The CEO of MBO Partners weighed in on a Gallup podcast episode, asserting that COVID-19 resulted in more individuals turning to the flexible work space.
On the podcast called "The Future of Work: Flexibility, Freedom and Control," MBO Partners CEO Miles Everson said the gig economy is expanding due to workers realizing it gives them the opportunity to have more control over their career.
“There is no question that COVID has accelerated remote work,” Everson said in the podcast. “We believe going forward, we're going to see more and more companies being comfortable in quote, using remote work. But more important, people are choosing to be independent...People are choosing to want to be in business for themselves. They are going to be independent. They're going to work remotely...think about what this is what this is doing to the balance of power between the employer and the employee...now workers get to choose which companies they work for. And they don't just choose it as a career decision. They get to choose because they're an independent contractor. And if that company has a culture or a set of business practices that is incongruent with their own values, they'll just go work for somebody else. It's very easy.”
MBO Partners is a jobs platform that connects independent professional workers with businesses that can make use of their skills.
Coronavirus restrictions led to a significant increase in flexible workers, a recent Investopedia report said. Many whose jobs were deemed unessential found themselves looking to fill other roles that were suddenly in higher demand—such as grocery delivery—or shifting to part-time or contract work. Now, with as much as a third of the American workforce participating in the gig economy to some extent, analysts expect that the flexible workforce will continue to grow.
By 2027, the number of freelancers in the United States is expected to increase to 86.5 million, or half of the total workforce, a recent report by Fast Company said. Full-time freelancers represented 28% of workforce in 2019 and increased to 36% in 2020.
Additionally, Upwork President and CEO Hayden Brown noted that a significant number of Fortune 100 companies—30% in fact—currently utilize freelance workers.
“Freelancers are in high demand in pretty much every skill area that can be done in front of a computer,” Brown said, quoted by Fast Company.
Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics showed that more than a third of employees age 65 and older worked less than 35 hours per week in part-time positions, a 2019 U.S. News report said. The report noted that retirees can perform essential work while still enjoying a flexible schedule.