Demographic profiles of gig workers and W-2 service-sector workers

Unweighted Weighted
Gig workers W-2 service-sector workers Gig workers W-2 service-sector workers
Race/ethnicity
White, non-Hispanic 78% 81% 52% 58%
Black, non-Hispanic 4% 3% 13% 12%
Hispanic 12% 8% 26% 20%
Other race/ethnicity, non-Hispanic 6% 7% 8% 10%
Gender
Men 45% 31% 60% 48%
Women 55% 69% 40% 52%
Mean age 41 40 37 34
Educational attainment
No degree or diploma earned 4% 4% 7% 5%
High school diploma/GED 21% 37% 27% 35%
Some college 73% 59% 65% 60%
School enrollment 13% 19% 15% 26%
English as a second language 14% 10% 26% 17%
Partnership status
Married, living with spouse 27% 31% 24% 25%
Living with a partner 21% 18% 21% 19%
Not living with a spouse or partner 49% 50% 52% 56%
Any children 57% 52% 48% 39%
Survey sample size 288 4,201 288 4,201

Source: Authors’ analysis of Shift Project survey data on gig workers and W-2 service-sector workers collected in May 2020. 

View the underlying data on epi.org.