by Leo Wiles
20 November 2015
We love a good statistic (hey, you only have to check out our Show Me The Money surveys to know that!) So when Jane Jackson shared some facts and stats about our stateside freelance counterparts (thanks Jane), we knew it was something that would have huge interest for you guys, too.
According to the report commissioned by Venture-backed Upwork (formerly Elance-oDesk) and the Freelancers Union, a third of Americans are now freelancing. That’s a staggering 53.7 million people who had undertaken freelance work in the 12 months prior to the survey.
Unlike our members however freelancing in this particular survey means ALL kinds of freelancing, not just in the creative field.
Freelancing was also given five definitions that range from full time employees who moonlight on the side (13.2 million) to the 19.3 million Americans who work have no employer and work like we do project to project.
With our survey soon out, and because I am a total nerd, I decided to crunch the numbers and pull out some interesting facts so that you can seem even more sexy and knowledgable at dinner tonight.
• 34 percent of US workers freelanced within the last year
• Roughly 60 percent of freelancers who left traditional employment now earn more than they did in their 9-5 inhouse job – woohoo!
• 78 percent of freelancers who quit a job said it took them less than a year to earn more than they were on in their full-time gig.
• The internet was named as THE most useful tool for finding freelance work
• Flexibility was the number one highlight of each freelancer’s decision. With the ability to choose where they worked, coming a close second to choosing which hours and when to work.
• Over half of the 7,000 people surveyed said there was NOTHING that would ever convince them to take a traditional job EVER again.
• 76 percent of respondents share our concerns about the lack of salary stability and 74% worry about having enough money when they retire.
For all the results, click here.
