Nearly 40 percent of the U.S. population are freelancers, with more on the way, which means it's time for politicians to start taking more of an interest. (Photo: Shutterstock)
Pundits may have believed that health care was the biggest issue in the election, but they may not know how right they are when it comes to the freelance voter.
Members of the gig economy, according to “The Freelance Political Perspective Report” from fiverr.com, share many views with the general population, but the differences that exist are startling. Freelancers, after all, face challenges not endured by the general population, and it shows in their responses.
And considering that nearly 40 percent of the U.S. population are freelancers, with more on the way, politicians—especially now that there's been a big change in Congress—had better listen up.
Related: How can employers #GigResponsibly?
According to the study, the U.S. has approximately 57.3 million freelancers, contributing $1.4 trillion to the economy. And if that's not enough to sit up and pay attention, consider this: “[I]t is anticipated that freelancers and independent workers will make up the majority of the workforce in the U.S. within 10 years. In the 15 biggest metropolitan areas, freelancers generated more than $110 billion in 2017.”
And they're not happy about some very important things. While, prior to the election, 39 percent of Americans overall felt that the country was moving in the right direction, just 34 percent of freelancers did. Marginally more freelancers say their financial situation is improving (34 percent) than getting worse (31 percent), while among the general population there's an even split of 34 percent to 34 percent.
And 66 percent of freelancers disapprove of how Trump is performing as president, with 63 percent also disapproving of Republicans and Democrats.
But when it comes to daily issues—health care, for one—more than 40 percent see it as the biggest issue, while less than a third of the general population share that opinion. In fact, 54 percent of freelancers favor the Affordable Care Act, compared with 44 percent of the general population, as well as a single-payer healthcare system (59 percent compared with 48 percent) and increased funding of health care for low-income individuals (75 percent compared with 58 percent).
Says the report, “Freelancers want a system where healthcare is accessible and affordable regardless of employment arrangements, and believe the government should be involved in that system.” Oh, and 70 percent of them disapprove of how Trump is handling the issue—thus it's not surprising to hear that 41 percent of side hustle freelancers say being employed to receive benefits is a key reason why they keep a job.
And 80 percent think the government isn't doing enough to support flexible working with portable benefits. They also support raising taxes on the rich (75 percent) and raising the federal minimum wage (74 percent)—as well as believing that the government should do more to improve workplace equality, especially for women (75 percent).
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Marlene Satter
Marlene Y. Satter has worked in and written about the financial industry for decades.
