Several studies suggest that the workforce of the world is shifting towards the gig economy. By 2020, it says that around 50% of Americans would be employed as freelancers instead of working the usual job. This shift in the economy and the labor force has many factors behind it. With the change in the attitude and preference of people, gig economy or the contingent labor force is on the rise. This paradigm shift can be attributed to ease, flexibility, recession or simply the want to not be bounded in one job.

The attitude of the previous workforce was to have a job that is secure and provides them with a comfortable retirement plan. It didn’t matter if you liked your job or not, all that mattered was having a job. With the shift in the generation and the ever-growing technology, the youth now looks for satisfaction and happiness in the job that they do. It is more about having a fulfilling job rather than a monotonous routine. While the labor market is looking for something else, the change in business also affects the market of labor.  There is a small business that is coming on the forefront and the concept of a start-up is becoming heavily popular. These small businesses are in dire need of talent for various work and find freelancers more feasible than employing a full-time employee. It eliminates the work of going through the screening process of several people and finding one person and training them. The business owners just register on sites like workafy.com and find their suitable match. They can view the potential employee’s portfolio and can choose a freelancer beyond their geographical areas. This gives them mobility, reasonable price, and accurate talent without having to waste their energy on finding a perfect full-time employee that would or would not match up to their level.

The freelancers who quit their nine to five jobs also agree that the freedom and flexibility of freelancing career are very attractive. It might take time to build up a network and gain enough reputation to earn more than a full-time job; however, it is not impossible. The first advantage being flexibility, the second is more income. If a person can have leisure and more income, then there is no reason one wouldn’t choose this type of field. This does mean that full-time employers will run out of jobs. But freelancing helps even during a recession when job opportunities are on an all-time low. You can still find work as a freelancer which shields you from the effects of the economy because freelancing does not bound you to a specific area or country.

Taking all these instances and factors into mind, it is evident that the market of freelancing is bound to grow in the next few years. Studies suggest that the workforce by 2025 would consist of 50% of freelancers. The economy has begun shifting towards the gig economy and the trend only seems to be going upward.