ABSTRACT
This chapter explores the ways in which people in Middle America make a living. It focuses on urban areas because, in the light of the decline in agricultural employment since the second half of the twentieth century, labour markets in the region are now predominantly urban. The chapter focuses on the informal sector, given that formal sector employment is discussed elsewhere in relation to export-oriented factory employment (Willis), ecotourism (Barton) and agriculture (Thorpe and Bennett). A final major issue addressed is the role of the informal sector as a mechanism of survival versus a 'sector of entrepreneurship', and the question of whether policies should encourage or inhibit its growth. Officially, unemployment refers to the situation where someone is without paid work or self-employment, but is currently looking for work, and is therefore part of the 'economically-active population' (EAP). Another area of marked change in the way in which the formal sector relates to working conditions and wages.
