12 Work in the informal economy Legal review The Transition from the Informal to the Formal Economy Recommendation, 2015(No. 204) of the ILO, recalls that“…decent work deficits – the denial of rights at work, the absence of sufficient opportunities for quality employment, inadequate social protection and the absence of social dialogue – are most pronounced in the informal economy”. In this re­spect, it is clear that many of the amendments introduced during the 2020 Labour Law Reform, as well as the establishment of a full-fledged labour inspection service contribute to Georgia’s transition to the formal economy, as they address the denial of rights at work. However, as this research highlights, further steps are required to ensure that the law is clear, gaps are filled and is applied to all workers. ILO Recommendation No. 204 also clearly spells out, however, that ensuring the transition to the formal economy requires the development and implementation of a range of mea­sures, not just reform of the labour law. 267 Few efforts seem to be made by the government at this time to take such a holistic approach in addressing informality, even though it could be argued that doing so would be one of the most important strategies the govern­ment could adopt to ensure the inclusive and sustainable development of Georgia. Literature Review According to a study by the International Monetary Fund, the share of the informal econ­omy in Georgia is 64.9% and Georgia ranks third among 158 countries in terms of the size of the informal economy. 268 It is noteworthy that informal employment is not limited to employment in the informal economy: informal employment is also found in the formal sector. A UN Women report shows that almost every second worker in Georgia is informally employed and this figure is almost identical for women and men. 269 The term‘informal economy’, according to the Transition from the Informal to the Formal Economy Recommendation, 2015(No. 204) of the ILO, refers to all economic activities by 267. See Article 11 of Recommendation R204- Transition from the Informal to the Formal Economy Recommendation, 2015(No. 204)(ilo.org) 268. Medina L., Schneider F., 2018. Shadow Economies Around the World: What Did We Learn Over the Last 20 Years? IMF Work­ing Paper WP/18/17. International Monetary Fund, 23. Available at: https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/WP/Issues/2018/01/25/ Shadow-Economies-Around-the-World-What-Did-We-Learn-Over-the-Last-20-Years-45583[Last access: 10.11.21]23. 269. UN Women. 2018. Women’s Economic Inactivity and Engagement in the Informal Sector in Georgia. Tbilisi, 8, 28. Avail­able at: https://georgia.unwomen.org/en/digital-library/publications/2018/12/womens-economic-inactivity-and-engage­ment-in-the-informal-sector-in-georgia[Last access: 10.11.21]. 125