According to a new Opinium survey, around one in five UK adults are actively working on developing a “side hustle” as the state of the UK workforce continues to change post-COVID. Indicating that this is a trend likely to continue growing, one third of 18-35 year olds polled in the study said they were building a side hustle
The findings come amid recent reports that UK workers are becoming more entrepreneurial since COVID-19 and are increasingly attracted to being their own boss and having more flexibility in their work. This is backed up by recent ONS figures which showed that the freelance workforce has grown by 48,000 since February and now accounts for 15 per cent of total UK workers.
The survey, which was carried out by Opinium on behalf of freelancer platform UnderPinned, polled 2,000 UK adults. 29 per cent of respondents said that they had gone freelance during the pandemic, with half saying they wanted to be their own boss and half seeking greater flexibility.
Regionally, 58 per cent of respondents from the West Midlands had gone freelance within the past two years, as well as 51 per cent of respondents from the South east and 46 per cent of those polled in the North East.
Commenting on the findings, Albert Azis-Clauson, CEO of UnderPinned, said: “This research reveals the huge impact the pandemic has had on the way people want to work, with these steep trends – particularly in some areas of the UK and amongst some demographics – suggesting the days of traditional full-time employment may be numbered.”
“The sudden changes the pandemic caused for employers and employees alike showed people that they can work for themselves and be their own boss, by marketing their skills remotely right across the country or indeed around the world. “
“Ministers and CEOs can tell people they should get back to the office all they like, but they cannot stop this train. The flexibility people want and deserve is possible, and rather than pushing back on these changes to the world of work, businesses should adapt. Freelance and independent workers can bring huge benefits to businesses across all sectors, if they’ll let them.”
