Part 3 of new Legal & General Study on U.S. gig economy workers takes a deep dive into what drives worker choices

• 63% of respondents say flexibility is the key reason they made this choice
• 35% of gig workers realize they can make more money working independently—54% of those earning over $100K
• 46% value the ability to take on more work and make more money
• 40% of respondents are reluctant to work in a traditional corporate setting for a variety of reasons

A third segment of a broad new study sponsored by Legal & General Group, U.S. Gig Economy, Part 3: Why Gig Work Is Becoming a Choice for So Many, was released today, continuing to explore the changing nature of work in the U.S., people’s relationship to it, and what employers should be thinking about in order to attract back talent. Part 3 of the study explores the why of gig work: why people choose or find their way to the U.S. Gig Economy, and how they describe their own agency within this framework. 

This third segment of the data-rich study, Why Gig Work Is Becoming a Choice for So Many, finds that the proportion of gig workers who have undertaken working in this model by choice (82 percent) far outstrips those for whom gig work was the next best option when they couldn’t secure a traditional job (13 percent). The study also looks into the top ‘best and worst’ factors of gig work, and how these inform lifestyle choices, sense of security, and financial stability.

While flexibility is a top driver, ethical concerns with corporations figure in gig workers’ choices

The study found that many workers who consider themselves part of the gig economy have ethical concerns with corporate America, with more than one in ten people surveyed expressing this as contributing to their decision to be self-employed. The study also found that while 16 percent of gig workers feel better able to adapt to a changing culture as a result of working independently, 20 percent reported feeling out of the loop in a fast-changing work culture. At the same time, 61 percent said that being able to work when they want is the best thing about gig work, and 46 percent said that gig work provides the ability to take on more work and thus make more money. On the negative side, 67 percent said that not having access to retirement plans and other benefits is a key drawback, and 62 percent didn’t like having to pay for their own health insurance.

Multiple factors

Legal & General’s study looks at the complex and multifaceted societal and financial factors behind independent work.

Future segments of this research will look in depth at the extent to which gig workers meet their health and life insurance needs; the fierce independent mindedness of gig workers; their outlook on retirement planning; what it would take to get gig workers to go back to the traditional workplace; and the pandemic fallout for gig workers.