engleski

Self-Employment: Personal Characteristics of the Self-Employed and Impact on Economic Growth

Self-employment is one of the key elements for the restructuring of the labor market and the economic recovery. This paper observes self- employed persons as part of the labor force with the aim to determine their similarity with entrepreneurs and employed persons, but also their specifics that make them a distinctive category. Self-employment is analyzed at the level of an individual based on its personal characteristics as well as a macroeconomic phenomenon. Self-employment is influenced by two groups of factors: "push" (self- employment as an escape from unemployment) and "pull" (self-employment, which resembles the entrepreneurship). The results indicate that self- employment is more common among older people, men, in agriculture and among people without the necessary qualifications for running a sustainable business. While the EU underlines self-employment as a driver of the economy and as solution for unemployment in the vulnerable groups of the labor market, the paper shows that self-employment decreases at the EU level. In most countries, the dynamics of self-employment is influenced by the "push" factors, especially during the recession, which greatly affects unemployment. It is concluded that self-employment, in most EU countries, is a result of the discrimination in the labor market and the inability to create new jobs, rather than being a voluntary decision based on a perceived business opportunity. The analysis has shown that self-employment does not have a positive impact on macroeconomic indicators. Furthermore, it has a weak role in the creation of jobs due to the low share of self-employed who act as employers.

self-employment, unemployment, business cycle,

Ovaj rad je nastao uz potporu Sveučilišta u Rijeci u okviru projekta: Koncepti i metode troškovnog i upravljačkog računovodstva u javnom sektoru Republike Hrvatske (br. 13.02.1.2.09.)