This study examines factors associated with openness to un­declared and under-declared work among dependent em­ployees in the European Union, focusing on individuals who have not reported recent engagement in informal employ­ment. Using Special Eurobarometer 92.1 microdata and logistic regression models, it adopts a preventive perspec­tive on potential vulnerability to informality. The analysis shows that openness is associated with socio-demographic characteristics, including age, gender, household composi­tion and social class, as well as employment context, prior exposure to informal practices, tax morale, perceived detec­tion risk and expected sanctions. The results also indicate that fully undeclared and under-declared work should not be treated as interchangeable, as they are associated with partly distinct individual, household and enforcement-re­lated patterns. In addition, item nonresponse suggests possible concealed familiarity with informality, although robustness checks indicate that alternative codings do not materially change the results. While pension outcomes are not directly estimated, the findings are relevant to debates on social protection, as openness to informal employment may indicate vulnerability to future contribution gaps if it translates into actual undeclared or under-declared work. By highlighting factors associated with early-stage openness to informality, the study contributes to discussions on la­bour market formalisation and preventive policy interven­tions aimed at supporting formal employment and long-term income security.

Reducing individuals' exposure to social risks is desirable from an individual and state perspective. A key factor determining the level of protection against the effects of social risks is the form of employment. The aim of this article is to indicate whether individuals with a lower level of protection in the social security system are characterised by lower trust in the Social Security, a more individualistic life attitude, or a lower level of knowledge about the pension system - and whether weaker protection is accompanied by compensatory measures. The answer to these questions is made possible by a statistical analysis based on individual data from the ZUS survey Knowledge and attitudes towards social security. In its light, those with the highest level of protection are also those with the highest level of knowledge about the mechanisms of the security system, while those with the highest or lowest level of protection are characterised by a slight dominance of communal over individualistic attitudes. Trust in ZUS is not statistically significantly different between groups with different levels of protection. Among compensation activities, voluntary saving is clearly more frequently recorded among those with low trust in ZUS, while the episode of working abroad was more frequent among those with above-average levels of knowledge. In selected subgroups, gaps in social security that could be compensated by public policy are revealed.