Modelling immigrants’ participation in undeclared work in Gauteng province, South Africa

The work that resulted in this article employed a hierarchical logistic model to test whether immigrants are more likely than non-immigrants to participate in undeclared work in Gauteng province. The empirical results were consistent with the structuralist exclusion hypothesis; immigrants were 1.81 times more likely than non-immigrants to participate in undeclared work. The results also imply that societal factors prompt immigrants to participate in undeclared work to a greater extent than non-immigrants. These discoveries suggest that policymakers should tackle the underlying structural problems that drive immigrants towards engaging in undeclared work, and strive to improve their working circumstances and facilitate their assimilation into formal employment arenas. One strategy the government could adopt to promote formalisation is to streamline the business registration procedure. The government should also prioritise easing the process of qualification transferability, to facilitate the recruitment of skilled and documented immigrants for formal employment opportunities.