Entrepreneurship in the shadow: faces and variations of Poland's informal economy

The emergence of the market economy in Poland towards the close of the last century went hand in hand with the rise of the spirit of enterprise, in all its forms and manifestations. In the new realities, entrepreneurship began to be seen as a public virtue. But along with the commendable attitudes of initiative, resourcefulness and self-reliance, Poles' enterprising spirit has also revealed its darker side, with a large portion of economic activity channelled into the informal sector. The transition time was conducive to new forms of unregistered income-earning, especially on the unofficial market for labour. The present paper describes the informal labour market in Poland, based on the latest findings of Central Statistical Office (GUS) research in the field, and results of the author's own research conducted in August 2011.