New research has shown that the number of older workers joining the freelance or the “work as a contractor” sector has surged in recent years.
There are now almost two million (1,907,000) self-employed individuals over the age of fifty who work as a contractor in the UK. This represents an increase of 58.5 per cent over the past decade, according to a recent study by freelance trade body The Association of Independent Professionals and the Self-Employed (IPSE).
The figures show that there has also been a sharp increase in the number of highly-skilled freelancers working in Britain, who now number just under a million (950,000), a number that has risen by 68.2 per cent over the last ten years.
IPSE’s report on the motivations and challenges of the self-employed individuals who work as a contractor in the UK shows why so many older people are turning to self-employment.
They said the four key factors are:
- Being able to work more flexibly (89 per cent agreed this was a factor),
- Having more control over work (89 per cent),
- Having more control over hours (84 per cent),
- The freedom to choose where to work (83 per cent).
However, when it came to the reasons for making the shift from full-time employment to freelancing, one in four older freelancers indicated that they had made the transition due to losing their previous job, compared to just seven per cent of 16 to 29 year olds.
Regardless, older freelancers appear to be happier with their work as a contractor jobs than their younger counterparts. Four out of five (81 per cent) of older respondents said that they were happy with freelancing, whereas only three fifths of younger freelancers could say the same.
Remarkably, 0 per cent of older freelancers disagreed with the statement that freelancing suited their lifestyle, compared with a ten per cent average over the remaining age groups.
IPSE’s head of research, Chloé Jepps, commented:
“This research clearly shows that over-fifties have played a crucial part in the growth of self-employment in the last ten years. And what’s remarkable – aside from the sheer number of older people turning to freelancing – is how happy they seem to be with it.
“Over-fifties are looking to freelancing for greater flexibility and control over how and when they work. For some, it is a way to move away from the confines of the 9-5; for others, it’s a way to launch or develop a passion project.
“It is clear that freelancing is not just an economic good for this country: it is also a great social good and a liberating force for millions of older workers. It is vital the government gets behind this remarkable shift in our workforce.”
5th November 2019.
