Composition of independent contractor workforce, 2005 and 2017
| All ages | Ages 55–64 | Ages 65+ | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | 2017 | 2005 | 2017 | 2005 | 2017 | |
| By education level | ||||||
| LTHS | 7.0% | 8.0% | 7.9% | 6.3% | 5.5% | 4.5% |
| HS | 28.7% | 25.7% | 23.6% | 24.8% | 25.6% | 19.9% |
| Some college | 29.2% | 26.5% | 27.8% | 29.5% | 28.0% | 23.2% |
| College | 21.9% | 25.5% | 21.8% | 25.6% | 20.3% | 27.8% |
| Advanced degree | 13.2% | 14.5% | 18.9% | 13.8% | 20.5% | 24.5% |
| By race/ethnicity | ||||||
| White | 80.0% | 70.9% | 86.0% | 78.2% | 89.7% | 83.9% |
| Black | 5.7% | 8.4% | 3.9% | 6.0% | 2.9% | 6.0% |
| Hispanic | 9.2% | 14.8% | 6.3% | 9.9% | 5.0% | 5.8% |
| Asian | 4.0% | 4.7% | 3.1% | 4.4% | 1.8% | 3.8% |
| By work hours | ||||||
| Full-time | 74.8% | 70.5% | 73.7% | 70.7% | 47.9% | 46.3% |
| Part-time | 25.2% | 29.5% | 26.3% | 29.3% | 52.1% | 53.7% |
| By number of jobs held | ||||||
| Has one job | 93.2% | 93.2% | 93.5% | 93.8% | 96.2% | 97.5% |
| Has multiple jobs | 6.8% | 6.9% | 6.5% | 6.2% | 3.8% | 2.5% |
Notes: LTHS is “less than high school” and HS is “high school.” Full-time is 35+ hours per week; part-time is less than 35 hours per week.
Source: CEPR analysis of Contingent Worker Supplement to Current Population Survey microdata from the U.S. Census Bureau