Dive Brief:
- U.S. freelance workers are wondering like everybody else what a Trump presidency will mean for them. Yahoo News reports that the president-elect has consistently talked about bringing back jobs to America. But what types of jobs and for whom?
- Yahoo says that Trump stressed bringing home manufacturing jobs throughout his campaign, even though millions disappeared in 2000 and have yet to return. High-tech and lower-paying service jobs have since taken their place.
- Since Trump has said little about the emerging “gig economy,” freelance workers have cause to feel uncertain about their prospects. They fill jobs on demand and depend on apps and websites like LinkedIn, Uber, TaskRabbit and Handy to find their next “gigs.” They now make up 35% of the workforce.
Dive Insight:
The number of those doing contracting work jumped by two million in just two years, from 53 million in 2014 to 55 million in 2016. Add in companies’ growing demand for their services and an unstoppable labor force emerges.
Freelancers might want to examine Trump’s own hiring practices in figuring how he’ll handle the gig economy. In the industries where he’s well known, hospitality and entertainment, little might have changed over the years. But as freelancers continue going public with their concerns and challenging employers in court to protect their compensation, the president-elect and his economic advisors may have to take notice during his term.