Table of Contents
Executive Summary
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- Overview
- Top takeaways
- If everyone you know has used Uber, you’re in a bubble
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- Figure 1: App usage and interest in past year, by age, October 2019
- Who’s in the gig economy? Young men, more than any demographic
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- Figure 2: Types of work in past year, October 2019
- Why gig work? More money, more flexibility
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- Figure 3: Gig workers’ attitudes toward their work, October 2019
- Consumers have a progressive view of the future of work
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- Figure 4: Attitudes toward the future of work, by age, October 2019
- What it means/what’s next
The Market – What You Need to Know
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- The gig economy is difficult to quantify
- Unemployment is low, but so is labor force participation and job quality
Market Size
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- What consumers think about the gig economy
- Sizing the gig economy is tough!
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- Figure 5: Alternative workers engaged in electronically mediated work, May 2017
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- Figure 6: Types of income-earning work in past year, October 2019
Market Factors
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- Unemployment is low, but a third of working age individuals aren’t working
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- Figure 7: Unemployment and Labor force participation rates, August 2007-November 2019
- Moreover, jobs are becoming lower quality
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- Figure 8: US private sector job quality index (JQI), January 1990 - January 2019
Trends Impacting the Gig Economy
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- Straight to You
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- Figure 9: Uber Freight acquisition mailing, July 2019
- Who Needs Humans
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- Figure 10: Flyte by Lyft, homepage, January 2020
- Figure 11: Uber manifold, homepage, January 2020
- Retired for Hire
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- Figure 12: Boomer breakdown by employment status and gender, April 2019
Key Players – What You Need to Know
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- Banks need to find a meaningful way to assist gig workers
- Gig fought the law and…the law has been winning recently
- Credit card issuers reflect popularity of gig economy in rewards
What’s Struggling
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- How do banks fit into the gig economy?
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- Figure 13: US Bank, informational email on gig economy, September 2019
- Workers’ rights, fair pay
- Regulatory battles, defeats
- Assembly Bill 5 threatens gig workers in CA
- Uber fined over half a billion dollars in New Jersey for not classifying drivers as employees
- Airbnb takes a legislative blow (also in New Jersey, incidentally)
What’s New, What’s Next
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- Credit card issuer benefits reflect growth of gig economy brands
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- Figure 14: The Points Guy, best credit cards for Uber and Lyft, December 2019
- Figure 15: Lyft & Mastercard loyalty email, January 2020
- Investors can more easily enjoy a share of the gig economy’s success
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- Figure 16: SoFi information email, gig economy etf, May 2019
- Uber launches staffing business in Chicago
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- Figure 17: Uber Works, December 2019
The Consumer – What You Need to Know
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- The gig economy is thriving on mobile, but not as much as you may think
- Just over one in six workers are involved in the gig economy
- Flexibility, more income attract gig workers
- Gig workers have fewer benefits; gig-only workers have very few
- Consumers think progressively about the future of work
Gig Economy Brands
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- It’s the age of the app, but many consumers simply aren’t interested
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- Figure 18: App usage and interest in past year, October 2019
- Ride-hailing apps are used the most; food delivery piques most interest
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- Figure 19: App usage and interest in past year, by age, October 2019
How People Work
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- About half of consumers are working full-time
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- Figure 20: Types of work in past year, October 2019
- Who is a gig worker?
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- Figure 21: Types of work in past year, October 2019
- Men, minorities and young folks are most eager to join the gig economy
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- Figure 22: Intention to work in the gig economy, by age, October 2019
- Figure 23: Intention to work in the gig economy, by gender, race and ethnicity, October 2019
Why Gig Work?
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- Flexible schedule, supplemental income
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- Figure 24: Gig workers’ attitudes toward their work, October 2019
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- Figure 25: Lyft acquisition email, December 2019
- Figure 26: Uber “New Year’s Eve Quest” email, December 2019
- Young workers also want stability, at odds with gig economy
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- Figure 27: Factors in improving economic situation, May 2018
Employment Benefits
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- Gig workers have fewer benefits
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- Figure 28: Access to employee benefits, all workers vs gig workers vs exclusively gig workers, October 2019
- What perks gig workers are afforded are used less often
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- Figure 29: Use of employee benefits, all workers vs those in the gig economy, October 2019
Attitudes toward Work
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- Half would consider gig work in the future, but most don’t think it’s enough to provide for a family
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- Figure 30: Attitudes toward gig work, by generation, October 2019
- Most think automation is going to change the nature of work; freelancing will be much more popular
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- Figure 31: Attitudes toward the future of work, by age, October 2019
- People want expansion of government safety nets
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- Figure 32: Attitudes toward social security, Medicare and UBI, October 2019
Appendix – Data Sources and Abbreviations
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- Data sources
- Consumer survey data
- Consumer qualitative research
- Direct marketing creative
- Abbreviations and terms
- Abbreviations
- Terms
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