State of Independence in America
What is it measuring?
The number of workers with "independent arrangements," including consultants, freelancers, contractors, temporary, and on-call workers. It also asks about their experiences and satisfaction.
What does it tell us?
In 2024, 72.7 million adults in America participated in independent arrangements - up only slightly from 72.1 million in 2023 - representing about 43 percent of the workforce both years. The survey reported consistent increases in its measure of independent arrangements from 2011 to 2019, before a considerable decline in 2020, which authors attributed to the pandemic-related disruptions. It has observed growth again from 2020 to 2023, leveling off last year.
How is it collected?
Through an online survey administered by Emergent Research and Illuminas, with 6,575 respondents in 2024. Responses were weighted demographically to represent the population. 2024 was the 14th year the State of Independence survey has been administered.
Who collects it?
MBO Partners, a business services company marketed toward independent professionals, contracts Emergent Research and Illuminas to conduct the annual survey. Earlier iterations were contracted to Emergent Research and Rockbridge Associates.
Considerations
Online surveys are unlikely to be representative of the population, with educated and higher-income workers likely to be overrepresented. Although many consider full-time to mean 40 hours per week, this survey counts anything above 15 hours per week as full-time.
How to access this data?
Privately held by MBO Partners