As the effects of the economic downturn continue to impact the
hiring budgets of firms worldwide, some workers are finding a bright
spot: rising opportunities for freelance and contract work.
Data from the Human Capital Institute suggests that at least
one-third of the American workforce is "non-traditional," a category
that includes independent contractors, consultants and other freelance
professional services. Furthermore, growth of this type of employment
is proceeding far more quickly than conventional jobs, the institute
says.
Experts say the recession will accelerate this trend, as companies
look for flexible ways to meet their staffing needs. Businesses have
always called upon freelance employees to help them with short-term
projects – particularly in creative fields such as graphic design or
content writing. But with organizations in virtually every sector
carefully monitoring their bottom line, the potential for cost savings
could be an even stronger incentive to seek out independent talent.
How do companies financially benefit from tapping the freelance
market? For one thing, when a business hires a contract worker, they
are able to avoid the burden of certain employment costs, such as
health insurance and retirement plans. According to the most recent
data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, employers spent an average of
$29.39 per hour on workers’ compensation in March 2009 – with employee
benefits comprising nearly one-third (30.3 percent) of these costs.
Meanwhile, some employers say they are better able to find qualified
workers – who may specialize in a particular niche – when they turn to
freelancers. This sensation may be even more pronounced in the current
economy, as more experienced workers may be searching for a new role.
Finally, an additional employer benefit from hiring a contractor is
that is can permit the company more flexible control over their
spending, since these types of arrangement cover a fixed period of time.
Employers are not the only ones who benefit from non-traditional
work relationships. Many freelance and contract employees often
appreciate the variety, flexibility and high wages of such work.
But recent evidence suggests that the fastest-growing segment of
contract workers is comprised of those who have lost their permanent
jobs. May employment figures showed that more than 9 million Americans
are working part-time for economic reasons, compared to 5 million who
were doing so a year ago.
"More and more people are taking up part-time roles, project jobs,
freelancing positions – a lot of them in fact want to find full-time
work, but they are willing to do these during this very difficult
time," employment consultant John Challenger told WCPO-TV, Cincinnati,
Ohio’s ABC affiliate.
While the prospect of re-entering the workforce with less of a
safety net may initially be intimidating, some people who succeed in
completing a number of freelance jobs wind up preferring their new
arrangement – and opting to continue on a path of non-traditional
employment.
Which areas are seeing the strongest growth in terms of recessionary hiring? According to June 2009 statistics
from oDesk, the popularity of social networking and blogging is having
an explosive effect on the creation of contract jobs related to these
websites’ underlying technology.
PHP development jobs related to Twitter, Facebook and Wordpress have
all climbed over the past six months, oDesk data indicates. Meanwhile,
Javascript and Photoshop skills are also consistently in demand.