Business owners reported an increase in hiring in all categories of workers over the past six months, with the greatest growth in one-time project or gig workers (37%).
SCORE’s latest infographic explores the rise of the gig economy in small business hiring.
This infographic highlights the findings of part 2 of The Megaphone of Main Street Small Business Jobs Report.
47% of non-employer/solopreneur firms reported hiring other people part-time to help run the business, for an average of 3.2 workers, including the owner.
20% of businesses reported replacing employees (of any type) with contractors over the past six months.
During the last 6 months, hiring increased for:
- Full-time employees at 13%
- Part-time employees at 22%
- Part-time independent contractors at 12%
- Temporary help provided by agencies or contract firms at 3%
- One-time project or “gig” workers at 37%
What has an impact on your decision to hire a contractor/temp worker versus an employee? The top five responses are:
- 50.8% say specialized expertise
- 41% say only have temporary or seasonal needs
- 35.1% say don’t have the cash reserves to comfortably make payroll
- 30.7% say cost of employee healthcare
- 25.5% say it’s less expensive to hire a contractor/temp worker
In what business functions do you outsource to contractors? The top three answers are:
- Technology (42%)
- Accounting (41%)
- Marketing (38%)
But employees bring benefits, too. Business owners reported that their top reasons to hire an employee included: consistency of work (57%) and a full-time worker’s commitment to the company, its vision and brand (53%).
