FREDERICK, Md.–While the roots of much of the U.S. CU community took hold in single companies or professions, a new study shows just how credit unions will have to continue to adjust as the nature of employment changes this year and beyond.
Announcing the “gig economy is here to stay,” a new study by Legal & General on gig economy workers in the country has found most are choosing flexibility over conventional appointment, even though it comes with a cost of the lack of basic financial safety nets such as health insurance and retirement planning.
The study found 69% of survey respondents saying they see themselves working in the gig economy for the foreseeable future, with fewer than 10% expressing a desire or plan to return traditional salaried employment.
The research zeroes in on the “breadth, historical backdrop, and growing pains of this burgeoning work mode,” the company said.
The First Segment
Legal & General said the first segment of the data-rich study, “The Gig Economy Is Here to Stay,” explores the effects of economic downturns on the specific demographic constituting the 365 of the U.S. population that make their living independently or on contract, unsalaried.
“While not limited to the U.S., the gig economy trend seems to be a particularly American phenomenon—both an outcropping of the independent spirit and also a reflection of the lack of social, health and financial guarantees available to the American population at large,” said Legal & General Group Chief Executive Sir Nigel Wilson. “By comparison, current data suggests that only 6.25 of the U.K. population counts itself as self-employed. Our research will explore what’s driving this difference and what’s lacking in the financial safety nets of U.S. gig workers.”
From Uber Drivers to Fishermen
Added study co-author and Legal & General Corporate Affairs Director John Godfrey, “To define the gig economy is a challenge—it comprises everything from best-selling authors to Uber drivers to fishermen. But with flexibility of work hours and freedom to earn as much or more than salaried workers listed as top reasons to stay in the gig economy, there was a clear desire on the part of survey respondents to balance work and life.”
The Second Segment
In a second release from the study, titled “The Gig Economy Represents a Vast Range of Industries and Fields,” Legal & General said it found:
- 60% of survey respondents earn their living solely in the Gig Economy
- 49% make at least 60% of their living in gig work earning under $50K/year
- 23% of gig workers earn between $100K and $4 million per year
According to the company, the second segment of the data-rich study, The Gig Economy Represents a Vast Range of Industries and Fields, examines the demographics of the American gig working population through the lens of those making more than 60% of their income through gig work, who are neither retired nor a student—including breakdowns by gender, geography, education, whether single or in a relationship, pay level and frequency, and tenure in working independently.
Range of Work Fields
The range of work fields identified in the study points to the multifaceted professional lives of this group, as well as getting a better understanding of their personas and what drives them to work in the gig economy, the company said.
“One of the fascinating takeaways from this this research is the kaleidoscopic array of people, professions, and pay scales that exist in the U.S. Gig Economy,” said study co-author John Godfrey. “The entrepreneurial spirit of U.S. gig workers seems to lead to an adaptive, polymath mindset that flies in the face of the model of financial and social stability offered by traditional employment models. Our research looks into the motivations as well as the setbacks to working this way.”
Legal & General said it looks at the complex and multifaceted societal and financial factors behind this wave of independent work are, propelled by positive incentives, insecurities and anxieties, and above all the desire for freedom and flexibility.
The Drawbacks
“The gig economy has its drawbacks, notably around financial security and, often, lack of access to basic health and social needs. Future segments will look in depth at how gig work is expressed as a choice; the fierce independent mindedness of gig workers; the extent to which gig workers meet their health and life insurance needs; similarly with their retirement needs; what it would take to get gig workers to go back to ‘the office,’ and the pandemic fallout for gig workers,” according to Legal & General.
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