Free-agent workers, defined as temporary contract workers, freelancers, independent professionals and consultants, now represent 28 percent of the U.S. labor force, according to a new study sponsored by staffing provider Kelly Services. This number indicates a 25 percent increase in the free-agent workforce since Kelly's first nationwide workforce study in 1998.
The free-agent workforce, estimated at 30 million workers, has more than doubled since 1980 and shows no sign of decline, according to the authors of the study.
"More and more companies are realizing the value of today's free-agent worker," says Carl Camden, president and chief operating officer of Kelly Services. "Free agents are diversified in their experiences and work well independently. They easily adapt to new work situations and will do whatever is needed to complete a specific job or assignment."
According to the recent survey, 93 percent of free agents believe the demand for their skills is moderate to high. Forty-three percent of free agents report that their workload has increased over the last year. The average number of hours that free agents work each week is 42.2 hours. Also, 60 percent of those surveyed have little or no confidence that the economic decline has ended and that the national economy has stabilized.
The recent Kelly National Workforce Study was designed to continue exploration of the trend in the United States toward greater numbers of free-agent workers. It follows two previous studies that were completed in 1998 and 2000. The survey of 1,000 employed adult residents in the United States was conducted via telephone in September 2002 by EPIC-MRA, a Lansing, Mich.- based polling firm.