The Gig Economy Absorbing Workers Formerly Known as Unemployed

NEW YORK, June 4 /PRNewswire/ -- How do you explain anemic job growth, just 41,000 new non-farm payroll jobs last month, ex census hires, far lower than leading economists had forecast, with a declining unemployment rate, from 9.9% to 9.7%? Conventional wisdom says that the unemployment rate is under reporting the number of unemployed people in America because if you stop looking for work you are no longer counted in the statistic, and the assumption has been that these people do in fact want a regular job but have given up hope.

But what if something else is happening here–what if the jobless are actually gravitating to an independent style of work outside of corporate America, fueled in part by easier access to affordable healthcare, and are riding the wave of technology that enables work from anywhere, on their terms, at hourly rates commensurate with their abilities? What if they have stopped looking for work but only in the conventional manner tracked by government statistics, and they are actually being absorbed by the Gig Economy, to be included among the very large segment of US workers who operate as independent professionals, freelancers and contractors?

These people are not temps-they don't show up in anyone's payroll figures, but rather as new corporations, LLC's and partnerships with no employees, adding to the almost 20 million in the US, according to the 2007 Census report. They are white collar knowledge workers who earn from $25 to $150 an hour applying their skills for organizations large and small, and more and more often they are plugging in from afar–from New England farmhouses to Rocky Mountain ski towns–cloud services enabling information sharing from anywhere and displacing the importance of location in work.

Savvy organizations realize they can tap into big time talent by the hour–no overhead, greater flexibility and just the right expertise when you need it. I suspect this trend will continue, as organizations like Solvate strive to make it easier to find and engage talent on demand, leading to a more efficient economy and happier workers.

About Solvate

Solvate is insourcing for companies.  Solvate matches you with Talent recommended by your network - and ours - to work on demand.  The Solvate staffing engine matches companies with Talent to work on demand, in marketing, sales, business development, admin, back office and more. Finding the right talent is as simple as filling in the blanks: "I need a _____________ who can _____________." Solvate matches based on your request, company, industry, and social graph, to connect you with peers. We've already handled the recruiting, interviewing, vetting, peer review, contract and rate negotiation so you can get straight to work with a match. Based in New York, Solvate is a venture-backed startup on a mission to build trust between businesses and independent professionals and holds itself accountable for the work they do. To submit a Request For Talent, visit www.solvate.com/solvatetalent.

SOURCE Solvate