Poor Work Around the Streets of Milan: An Ethnographic Study of the Informal Street Vending Sector
The empirical material is drawn from extensive ethnographic research conducted between 2020 and 2021 in five open-air markets in the city of Milan. Fieldwork observations and in-depth qualitative interviews involved not only unlicensed and irregular street vendors, but also law enforcement agencies that monitor markets compliance and economic actors that contribute to defining the economic and regulatory framework within which street vending operates.
The empirical findings highlight how many of the difficulties that street vendors face on a daily basis stem from repressive urban policies and economic constraints. On the one hand, 'security-oriented' urban policies aimed at maintaining decorum and public order condition the daily surveillance activities of open-air markets and of work irregularities. In addition, the sector is subject to specific administrative constraints related to licensing procedures, which in turn shape the precarious and uncertain career trajectories of street vendors. In response, informal workers - who are often criminalised - adopt innovative strategies to cope with the daily challenges, creating informal support networks that enable them to withstand pressure from both the market and local authorities.
By examining the daily conditions of informal street vendors in the city of Milan, the paper contributes to a well-established academic debate aimed at broadening policy instruments to guarantee the dignity and rights of those working in the shadows of the formal economy. It also contributes to a wider debate on the structural factors that underpin dirty jobs in different economic secotors.