The Self-Employed and the Welfare State in the EU: Insights from Gender and Race Equality Law

Abstract

The growth in self-employment in European Union (EU) Member States has the potential to fundamentally challenge the existing scope and implementation of welfare structures. In the EU28, the self-employed formed 16.1 per cent of total employment in 2015.1 At the domestic level in the UK, there has been an increase from 3.8 million self-employed in 2008 to 4.6 million in 2015.2 This rise is seen as one of the ‘defining characteristics of the UK’s economic recovery’ following the 2008 financial crisis.3 However, the growth in self-employment is part of a longer-term trend in the UK economy, with self-employment increasing from 11.9 per cent of all employment in 2000 to 14.9 per cent of all empl..