Variations of Self-Employed in Eurozone Countries: The Role of Corruption and Wage Rate Growth

Abstract

This study emphasizes two variables as significant determinants of the number of individuals who choose self-employment. First, it is assumed that the opportunity cost of self-employment has a negative effect. This cost is measured as the income that would be earned in wage employment. Second, self-employment provides more opportunities for tax evasion and tax avoidance. The higher the corruption rate, the higher the self-employment rate. These two variables—wages and corruption scores—are used as potential determinants of the ratio of self-employed persons to the total labor force. Data from the twenty Eurozone countries are employed to test these hypotheses. Both hypotheses cannot be rejected based on the empirical evidence. Keywords: Eurozone countries, wage growth, self-employment corruption, labor force, unemployment