Small Business Labs

SEPTEMBER 11, 2018

billion on contract labor (freelancers, temps, etc.) .  As with prior years , sole proprietor spend on contract labor caught our eye.    As the chart below shows, U.S. sole proprietors spent about $56.8 in 2016, up from $34.4 billion in 2010.   This is an increase of 65% between 2010 and 2016.  billion to $90.9

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Small Business Labs

JULY 26, 2018

Bloomberg's Inside Google's Shadow Workforce covers the use by Google of what they call TVCs, or “temps, vendors and contractors" According to the article about half of Google's workforce is comprised of TVCs.    We've recently covered a number of studies confirming this.

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Small Business Labs

NOVEMBER 23, 2015

.  While looking through the data we were struck by the extent of the growth in the usage of contract labor - contingent workers such as freelancers, independent contractors, temps, etc. -   by sole proprietors.    As the chart below shows, sole proprietor contract labor expenses increased 38% between 2010 and 2013. 

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Small Business Labs

DECEMBER 12, 2012

Instead, younger Europeans "float" from temp job to temp job. The trend they are describing is Europe's shift to a contingent workforce. For younger Europeans (and even older Europeans), this means traditional jobs are near impossible to find.

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Small Business Labs

MAY 2, 2016

Our research indicates temps, on-call workers, day workers and others with little work control often fall into this category.  See The Two Sides of the Temp Economy ,  The Yin and Yang of Freelancing  and Autonomy, Control and Self-Employment Satisfaction for more on this. No wonder they're not happy.

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Small Business Labs

JUNE 21, 2012

Adjunct faculty is what colleges and universities call temp or part-time professors.  Many  colleges and universities are in financial trouble , which means more temp faculty members. A Portrait of Part-Time Faculty Members is a report on the duties and pay of adjunct university faculty.  Of those, more than 1.3

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Small Business Labs

MAY 22, 2012

 And since there is a glut of Ph.Ds in many fields, schools don't have to pay well to attract temp professors.  Many colleges and universities are in financial trouble , which means more temp faculty members. All of this adds up to situation like the one described in article - a women with a Ph.D

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Small Business Labs

JUNE 20, 2013

We consider this a small victory in our ongoing efforts to explain that many independent workers (freelancers, self-employed, temps, etc.) chose to be independent and like it. See the MBO Partners State of Independent report - which is mentioned in the CNN piece and we helped produce - for more details.

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Small Business Labs

FEBRUARY 18, 2016

We use a combination of "gig economy" and "on-demand economy"   We define the "gig economy" broadly and include all economic activity done by independent workers (freelancers, contractors, self-employed, temps, etc.). 

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Small Business Labs

JUNE 2, 2015

The GAO includes the following in their definition: Agency temps: (1.3%). .  The GAO's definition of contingent covers the broad category of workers who aren't full-time, permanent employees. On-call workers (people called to work when needed (3.5%). Contract company workers (3.0%).

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Small Business Labs

OCTOBER 27, 2015

  The tagline of the study is "the future of work is here" By this they mean contingent talent - freelancers, consultants, independent contractors, temps etc. - They're a study sponsor (registration required).  is becoming a substantial source of corporate talent. They're also projecting this share to increase. The

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Small Business Labs

NOVEMBER 11, 2014

Ardent Partners is an analyst firm focused on corporate procurement and as part of this brief they research and analyze the use of contingent labor (temps, contractors, consultants, etc.) by corporations.

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Small Business Labs

APRIL 1, 2013

It's not surprising that independent workers (freelancers, temps, self-employed, etc.) rely on word of mouth/referrals for getting business. What is a bit surprising is just how important word of mouth is compared to other methods.

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Small Business Labs

FEBRUARY 22, 2013

" Earlier in the survey the term independent worker is defined to include freelancing, temping, self-employment, etc.  .  One of the questions asked is: "How likely is it that you will be an independent worker (without a permanent employment arrangement) or own your own business in the next 24 months?"

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Small Business Labs

APRIL 24, 2013

The growth of the independent workforce (freelancers, temps, self-employed, etc.) has also led to a growing ecosystem of companies supporting independent workers and the firms that hire them.

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Small Business Labs

MAY 24, 2012

The article covers one of the more interesting statistics from MBO Partners State of Independence Study , which is 22% of Gen Y (born 1980 to 2000) independent workers (freelancers, temps, etc.) reported that the primary market they served is non-profits. This is substantially higher than any other age group.

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Small Business Labs

JANUARY 7, 2016

The data overwhelmingly shows the use of non-W2 labor is growing at a much greater pace than overall employment or the growth in temp labor. This is clearly an attempt at spin by Dameris. As far as sophisticated corporations refusing to use non-W2 labor, we know from both our research and personal experience this simply isn't true. 

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Small Business Labs

APRIL 2, 2013

 Which is one reason why we recently worked with MBO Partners on a study of Gen X Independent Workers (freelancers, temps, self-employed, etc.). Both Baby Boomers and Gen Y get a lot more attention from researchers and the press. Which

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Small Business Labs

APRIL 2, 2012

" The article goes on to suggest that governments at all levels need to respond to the rapidly growing number of contingent (freelancers, contractors, temps, etc.) workers with new policies and approaches. This is an extremely important issue.  This approach simply no longer fits the new economy.

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Small Business Labs

JULY 24, 2013

 Examples include The Temp Economy, The Gig Economy, Freelance Nation, The Grassroots Economy, The Artisan Economy ( a term we use ), The Bottom Up Economy (we posted on this one yesterday , etc.   I'm starting to warm to the task economy because all work - and not just temporary work - has become much more task oriented.

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Small Business Labs

JULY 5, 2011

  This study will examine the significant and growing independent worker (self-employed, freelancer, contractor, temps, etc.) MBO Partners has announced the kickoff of its first annual " State of Independence in America " study.  movement in the US.

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Small Business Labs

SEPTEMBER 5, 2012

The focus of the study was to figure out how many independent workers (freelancers, temps, solopreneurs, independent consultants, etc.) .  Emergent Research partnered with MBO Partners and Rockbridge Partners on this study. there are in the U.S.   Key findings include: The independent workforce grew from 16 million in 2011 to 16.9

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Small Business Labs

NOVEMBER 8, 2011

Like many large corporations Caterpillar, the Illinois-based heavy equipment maker, is increasing the size of their contingent workforce (freelancers, contractors, consultants, temps, etc.).   What's interesting about Caterpillar is they've decided to include information on contingents in their quarterly earnings releases.

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Small Business Labs

SEPTEMBER 17, 2013

" In interviews with this group - often temps, on-call workers and others with little job control or autonomy - we found they didn't get the major benefits of being self-employed and they were impacted in major ways by the disadvantages.   We've posted in the past about the two sides of independent work.

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Small Business Labs

APRIL 13, 2012

Lot's of recent news about the continued growth of the contingent workforce, which is the term the corporate world uses for what we call the independent workforce - freelancers, contractors, independent consultants, temps, etc. Recent articles on this topic from the corporate point of view include: 1.

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Small Business Labs

MAY 15, 2012

The grim job market is a key reason more young Americans are pursuing work as independents (temps, freelancers, etc.). .  Between 2000 and 2011 real wages for high school workers under age 25 fell by 11.1%.  For college grads the decline was 5.4%.  We expect to see these numbers to continue to grow.

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Small Business Labs

NOVEMBER 3, 2015

Because of this dark side, we need better laws and protections for temps, contract workers and others being unfairly exploited or in need of more economic security.  Despite the book's hyperbole, vitriol and one-sided point of view, I genuinely enjoyed it.   And Raw Deal does a great job describing the dark side. 

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Small Business Labs

JUNE 5, 2012

Because of this situation, we've decided to conduct deeper research dives this summer on millennial and aging boomer/senior independent workers (freelancers, temps, contractors, etc.). In the U.S.,

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Small Business Labs

OCTOBER 17, 2012

Regular readers know we believe the number of independent workers (freelancers, temps, etc.) The Forbes article In the Future, Nobody Will Have Jobs  summarizes the growing view that traditional jobs are going the way of the dinosaurs, replaced by an array of contract workers and automation. is going to continue to grow.

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Small Business Labs

JANUARY 24, 2012

A growing gap between rich and poor in countries like Canada has been blamed, in part, on a growing number of poor quality jobs. There’s also mounting evidence to suggest that the rise of the throwaway worker has made recent recessions more painful and longer-lasting. More like a temporary economy." We don't agree.

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Small Business Labs

SEPTEMBER 18, 2012

 We also expect much more focus on micro-enterprises (firms with fewer than 5 employees) and independent workers (freelancers, temps, self-employed, etc.) .   Over the next 5 years we expect the interest in small businesses to continue to grow. as target markets.

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Small Business Labs

DECEMBER 9, 2010

  The Shift to Contingent Workers Turns Employees into Entrepreneurs :  If anything, the shift to contingent workers (part-timers, temps, contractors, freelancers, etc.) .  Here is how we did in 2010: 1.  has been even more pronounced than we expected.  would expand.  "  He was so right. 

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Small Business Labs

JUNE 10, 2010

  From the article: "The jobs that are coming back are part-time and temporary. The latest data show that there is an ongoing loss of full-time and permanent jobs.

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Small Business Labs

JANUARY 4, 2011

.  Freelancers Realize They're Small Business Owners:   The last few years have seen strong growth in the number of contingent workers - freelancers, part-timers, temps and contractors.    Many of these new contingent workers are embracing freelancing and choosing to stay contingent.    Technology.

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Small Business Labs

JANUARY 5, 2012

.  Senior Independents:   Also driving the growth of independent workers is the increasing number of mature workers (those aged 55+) becoming independent (freelancers, consultants, temps, etc.).    Loyalty Meets Daily Deals:   There’s a lot of debate about the merits of daily deals. 

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Small Business Labs

JUNE 3, 2010

  The CNN article focuses on the growing use of temps.  .  Although he doesn't use the term, Reich's article focuses on the growing number of necessity-preneurs.    These are folks who turn to self-employment because they can't find a job. 

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Small Business Labs

SEPTEMBER 29, 2015

These are people who regularly work as independent workers (self-employed, freelancers, temps, etc.) Key findings include: The number of independent workers aged 21 and up stands at 30.2 million in 2015, divided between 17.8 million Full-Time Independents and 12.4 million Part-Time Independents. in an average work week.

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