A recent study found that 77% of independent contractors are very satisfied working as independent contractors. The Direct Selling Association sponsored the study titled, The Workforce of the Future, which was conducted by Bloomberg Government.
Additional key findings from the study include:
- The number one reason study participants chose to become independent contractors was to be their own boss.
- 77% of independent contractors provide services for two or more companies.
- About half of independent contractors work more than 30 hours per week.
- 46% of study participants have six or more years working as an independent contractor.
Bloomberg Government hosted a presentation on May 26, 2016, to release the study and discuss the evolution of independent contractors due to technological advances that have created new opportunities. Joseph N. Mariano, President of the Direct Selling Association, gave welcoming remarks to lead-off the presentation, which featured several speakers representing government, academia and private industry.
Representative Steve Chabot (R-OH), Chairman of the House Small Business Committee, suggested that federal and state governments coordinate laws and regulations governing independent contractors. He also seemed open to creating new categories of worker classification.
A representative from Uber did not believe additional categories of worker classification were necessary, but instead endorsed harmonizing the tests used to determine a worker’s status for purposes of federal laws. The representative also substantiated certain survey results, noting that over 90% of Uber drivers chose to work with the company to be their own boss.
Not all speakers supported amending current laws. Traci Lynn, the founder and CEO of Traci Lynn Fashion Jewelry, a company in the direct selling industry, advised that she and the independent contractors that sell her company’s products are content with the current laws governing independent-contractor status.
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