Table 1. Employed contingent and noncontingent workers by selected characteristics,
Table 2. Percent distribution of employed contingent and noncontingent workers by selected
Table 3. Employed contingent and noncontingent workers by school enrollment and
Table 4. Employed contingent and noncontingent workers by occupation and industry,
Table 5. Employed workers with alternative and traditional work arrangements by selected
Table 6. Employed workers with alternative and traditional work arrangements by selected
Table 7. Employed workers with alternative and traditional work arrangements by school
Table 8. Employed workers with alternative and traditional work arrangements by occupation
Table 9. Employed contingent and noncontingent workers and those
Table 10. Employed contingent workers by their preference for contingent
Table 11. Employed workers with alternative work arrangements by their
Table 12. Employed workers with alternative and traditional work arrangements by
Technical information: (202) 606-6378 USDL 95-318
606-6373
Media contact: 606-5902 For release: 10:00 A.M. EDT
Thursday, August 17, 1995
NEW DATA ON CONTINGENT AND ALTERNATIVE EMPLOYMENT EXAMINED BY BLS
The considerable flexibility ingrained in the United States labor
market has produced a variety of employment arrangements. The Bureau of
Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor has completed the first
special survey on workers in contingent jobs, that is, jobs which are
structured to last only a limited period of time. Also collected in the
survey was information on the number of workers in several alternative
employment arrangements, such as those working for temporary help agencies
or as independent contractors or "on call." The attached report examines
the initial findings from that survey.
Single copies of Contingent and Alternative Employment Arrangements,
Report 900, are available from BLS, (202) 606-6378 or (202) 606-6373.
# # #
This information will be made available to sensory-impaired
individuals upon request. Voice phone: 202-606-7828, TDD phone:
202-606-5897, TDD message referral phone number: 1-800-326-2577.
Contingent and Alternative
Employment Arrangements
U. S. Department of Labor
Bureau of Labor Statistics
Report 900
August 1995
The first special survey to produce estimates of the number of workers
in contingent jobs, that is, jobs which are structured to last only a
limited period of time, has been completed by the Bureau of Labor
Statistics. The survey also produced estimates of the number of workers in
several alternative employment arrangements, including those working as
independent contractors and on-call workers, as well as those working
through temporary help agencies or contract companies. The survey was
conducted as a supplement to the February 1995 Current Population Survey
(CPS), a monthly sample survey of about 60,000 households conducted by the
Bureau of the Census for the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Initial results from the survey show that, in February 1995, between
2.7 and 6.0 million workers--a range of 2.2 to 4.9 percent of total
employment--were in contingent jobs. This range spans three alternative
estimates which were developed to assess the impact of different
assumptions about which factors constitute contingent employment. The
narrowest estimate includes only wage and salary workers who had been in
their jobs for 1 year or less and expected their jobs to last for an
additional year or less. The middle estimate added the self-employed and
independent contractors who were in a similar situation. In the third and
broadest estimate, the limitation on how long workers had held their jobs
and expected to remain in them was dropped for wage and salary workers;
thus, this estimate includes almost any worker who believed his or her job
was temporary or not expected to continue. (See table A.)
The February survey also showed that 8.3 million workers (6.7 percent
of the total employed) said they were independent contractors, 2.0 million
(1.7 percent) worked "on call," 1.2 million (1.0 percent) worked for
temporary help agencies, and 652,000 (0.5 percent) worked for contract
firms that provided the worker's services to one customer at that
customer's worksite. (See table B.)
In this analysis, contingent employment is defined separately from
these four types of employment arrangements, although an individual's
employment arrangement could be both "contingent" and fall into one of the
alternative employment categories. (See table 12.) A complete description
of concepts and definitions used in the supplement is presented in the
technical note at the end of this report.
Contingent employment
The major goal of the February supplement was to provide information
on the extent to which workers were in jobs that were structured to be of
limited duration. Specifically, contingent workers are being defined here
as those individuals who do not perceive themselves as having an explicit
or implicit contract for ongoing employment. Prior to the February
supplement, data on this characteristic of jobs were lacking. The term
contingent work has been used, however, to refer to a variety of work
arrangements. These include part-time work, self-employment, employment in
the business services industry, and, in fact, almost any work arrangement
that might be considered to differ from the commonly perceived norm of a
full-time wage and salary job.
Table A provides the definition for contingency and the three overall
estimates developed from the survey based on this definition. These three
estimates ranged from 2.2 percent of total employed at the narrowest level
that covers only wage and salary workers, to 2.8 percent when the self-
employed were added in, and finally to 4.9 percent of the total when time
restrictions were relaxed. In terms of numbers, the contingent workforce
was fairly sizable, ranging upward to 6 million persons.
Table A. Contingent workers as a percent of total employment, February 1995
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| | Percent of total |
| Definition and alternative estimates of contingent workers | employed |
|--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| Contingent workers are those who do not have an implicit or | |
| explicit contract for ongoing employment. Persons who do | |
| not expect to continue in their jobs for personal reasons | |
| such as retirement or returning to school are not considered | |
| contingent workers, provided that they would have the option | |
| of continuing in the job were it not for these personal | |
| reasons. | |
|--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| | |
| Estimate 1 | |
| | |
| Wage and salary workers who expect their jobs will last for an | |
| additional year or less and who had worked at their jobs for 1 | |
| year or less. Self-employed workers and independent contractors | |
| are excluded from this estimate. For temporary help and contract | |
| workers, contingency is based on the expected duration and tenure | |
| of their employment with the temporary help or contract firm, not | 2.2 |
| with the specific client to whom they are assigned. | |
| | |
| Estimate 2 | |
| | |
| Workers including the self-employed and independent contractors | |
| who expect their employment to last for an additional year or | |
| less and who had worked at their jobs (or been self-employed) for | |
| 1 year or less. For temporary help and contract workers, | |
| contingency is determined on the basis of the expected duration | |
| and tenure with the client to whom they are assigned, instead of | 2.8 |
| their tenure with the temporary help or contract firm. | |
| | |
| | |
| Estimate 3 | |
| | |
| Workers who do not expect their jobs to last. Wage and salary | |
| workers are included even if they already had held the job for | |
| more than 1 year and expect to hold the job for at least an | |
| additional year. The self-employed and independent contractors | |
| are included if they expect their employment to last for an | |
| additional year or less and they had been self-employed or | 4.9 |
| independent contractors for 1 year or less. | |
| | |
|---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The following are some of the major findings regarding the
characteristics of contingent workers.
-- Under all three estimates, contingent workers were more than twice
as likely as noncontingent workers (those who are not contingent
even under the broadest estimate) to be young, that is, 16 to 24
years of age. (See tables 1 and 2.)
-- Contingent workers were slightly more likely than noncontingent
workers to be women and black. About half of all contingent workers
were women, compared to 46 percent of the noncontingent. The
proportion of contingent workers who were black was about 14
percent, compared with approximately 10 percent of noncontingent
workers. (See tables 1 and 2.)
-- Among 16 to 24 year-olds, contingent workers were more likely than
noncontingent workers to be enrolled in school. Among young people
not enrolled in school, a larger proportion of contingent than
noncontingent workers had less than a high school diploma; this
pattern was also true for persons ages 25 to 64. (See table 3.)
-- Although part-time workers--persons who usually work less than 35
hours a week--made up a disproportionately large share of contingent
workers, the vast majority of part-time workers (about 9 in 10) was
not contingent. (See tables 1 and 2.)
-- The services industry alone accounted for more than half of the
contingent total but about a third of noncontingent workers. (See
table 4.) The construction industry also accounted for a relatively
large share of contingent workers. This concentration
notwithstanding, the proportion of workers within the services
industry who were contingent ranged from 3.4 to 7.5 percent.
Similarly, only 4.5 to 8.4 percent of construction workers were
contingent.
-- Contingent workers were concentrated in the professional; service;
administrative support; and operator, fabricator, and laborer
occupations. (See table 4.)
-- The proportion of contingent workers who had health insurance from
any source ranged from 57 to 65 percent, depending on the estimate
chosen. This was 17 to 25 percentage points lower than the
proportion of noncontingent workers with health insurance.
Moreover, contingent workers with insurance were substantially less
likely to receive it from their employers. (See table 9.)
-- The majority of contingent workers preferred to have permanent
rather than temporary jobs; only one-third preferred the contingent
arrangement. (See table 10.) Among nonstudents, the proportion of
contingent workers who were satisfied with their arrangement dropped
by as much as 9 percentage points.
Alternative employment arrangements
Another major goal of the February 1995 supplement was to measure the
number and characteristics of workers in alternative work arrangements.
Workers in the four alternative employment arrangements examined were:
Independent contractors, on-call workers, workers paid by temporary help
agencies, and workers whose services are provided through contract firms to
only one customer at that customer's worksite. The four groups varied a
great deal in terms of their demographic and other characteristics.
Furthermore, these worker groups--particularly independent contractors and
on-call workers--had sharply different characteristics from workers in more
"traditional" arrangements. Table B provides information on how these four
groups were identified in the survey, and data on their characteristics,
described in the following paragraphs, are presented in tables 5 through 9
and 11.
Table B. Workers in alternative employment arrangements as a percent of
total employment, February 1995
|---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Type of alternative arrangement | Percent of total
| | employed
|---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Independent contractors |
| Workers identified as wage and salary workers in the basic CPS who |
| answered affirmatively to the question, "Last week, were you working as an |
| independent contractor, an independent consultant, or a free-lance worker? |
| That is, someone who obtains customers on their own to provide a product |
| or service." Workers identified as self-employed in the basic CPS were |
| asked, "Are you self-employed as an independent contractor, independent |
| consultant, or something else (such as a shop or restaurant owner)?" in |
| order to distinguish those who consider themselves to be independent |
| contractors, consultants, or free-lance workers from those who were | 6.7
| business operators such as shop owners or restaurateurs. |
| |
| |
| On-call workers and day laborers |
| Workers who answered affirmatively to the question, "Some people are in a |
| pool of workers who are ONLY called to work as needed, although they can |
| be scheduled to work for several days or weeks in a row, for example, |
| substitute teachers and construction workers supplied by a union hiring |
| hall. These people are sometimes referred to as ON-CALL workers. Were |
| you an ON-CALL worker last week?" Also, those answering affirmatively to |
| the question, "Some people get work by waiting at a place where employers |
| pick up people to work for a day. These people are sometimes called DAY |
| LABORERS. Were you a DAY LABORER last week?" |
| |
| | 1.7
| |
| Workers who are paid by temporary help agencies |
| Workers who said their job was temporary and answered affirmatively to the |
| question, "Are you paid by a temporary help agency?" Also, workers who |
| said their job was not temporary and answered affirmatively to the |
| question, "Even though you told me your job was not temporary, are you |
| paid by a temporary help agency?" |
| | 1.0
| |
| Workers provided by contract firms |
| Workers who answered affirmatively to the question, "Some companies |
| provide employees or their services to others under contract. A few |
| examples of services that can be contracted out include security, |
| landscaping, or computer programming. Did you work for a company that |
| contracts out you or your services last week?" These workers also had to |
| respond negatively to the question, "Are you usually assigned to more than |
| one customer?" In addition, these workers had to respond affirmatively to |
| the question, "Do you usually work at the customer's worksite?" |
| | .5
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Independent contractors were considerably more likely than workers in
traditional arrangements to be men, white, and at least 25 years old; they
also were more likely to be out of school and have at least a bachelor's
degree. They were somewhat more likely than traditional workers to work
part time and to hold managerial, professional, sales, or precision
production jobs. In terms of industries, they were more likely to work in
construction, agriculture, and services, and less likely to work in
manufacturing or wholesale and retail trade.
The demographics of on-call workers (including day laborers) were
similar to those of workers in traditional arrangements, but on-call
workers were slightly younger. In terms of job characteristics, they were
more than three times as likely to be in the construction industry and also
more likely to be in the services industry. On-call workers were more
likely than traditional workers to work part time and to be in
professional; service; and operator, fabricator, and laborer occupations.
Workers paid by temporary help agencies were more likely than workers
in traditional arrangements to be women, young, and black and were slightly
more likely to be employed part time. They were heavily concentrated in
administrative support and operator, fabricator, and laborer occupations.
Workers provided by contract firms were disproportionately male. The
largest proportion of contract workers was employed in the services
industry, although substantial proportions worked in manufacturing and
transportation and public utilities. Contract workers were more likely to
be in professional specialty or service occupations than were traditional
workers.
Most on-call workers and workers paid by temporary help agencies would
have preferred to be in traditional work arrangements. In stark contrast,
more than 4 out of 5 independent contractors preferred their current work
arrangements.
As noted above, not all workers in alternative work arrangements met
the definition of being contingent and not all contingent workers were in
alternative work arrangements. Table 12 presents the proportion of workers
in the various alternative work arrangements who were contingent. Under
the broadest estimate (estimate 3) of contingency, the majority of
employees of temporary help agencies were in contingent jobs and a
substantial proportion of on-call workers were contingent; however, only
about 20 percent of contract workers and 4 percent of independent
contractors were contingent. When asked, 80 percent of those paid by
temporary help agencies said that their jobs were temporary or could not
last as long as they wished. However, 18 percent of temporary help agency
workers had been working for the customer to whom they were assigned for
more than a year, implying that temporary help agencies act as
intermediaries for some relatively long-term employment relationships.
More detailed profiles of the workers in contingent and alternative
employment arrangements will be presented in future analyses of the
February supplement data.
Technical Note
The data presented in this report were collected through a supplement
to the February 1995 Current Population Survey (CPS), a monthly survey of
about 60,000 households that provides the basic data on employment and
unemployment for the Nation. This supplement was the first ever to obtain
information directly from workers on whether they held contingent jobs,
that is, jobs which were structured to last only a limited period of time.
In addition, information was collected on several alternative employment
arrangements, including working as independent contractors and on call, as
well as working through temporary help agencies or contract firms.
All employed persons, except unpaid family workers, were included in
the February supplement. For persons holding more than one job, the
questions referred to the characteristics of their main job--the job in
which they worked the most hours. Since this was the first survey to
collect information on contingent and alternative employment, it was not
possible to determine whether such employment arrangements have become more
common.
Defining and estimating the contingent workforce. Contingent workers were
defined as those who do not have an explicit or implicit contract for long-
term employment. Several pieces of information were collected in the
supplement from which the existence of a contingent employment arrangement
could be discerned. These include: whether the job was temporary or not
expected to continue, how long the worker expected to be able to hold the
job, and how long the worker had held the job. For workers who had a job
with an intermediary, such as a temporary help agency or a contract
company, information was collected about their employment at the place they
were assigned to work by the intermediary as well as their employment with
the intermediary itself.
The key factor used to determine if a worker's job fit the conceptual
definition of contingent was whether the job was temporary or not expected
to continue. The first questions of the supplement were:
1. Some people are in temporary jobs that last only for a limited time
or until the completion of a project. Is your job temporary?
2. Provided the economy does not change and your job performance is
adequate, can you continue to work for your current employer as long as you
wish?
Respondents who answered "yes" to the first question, or "no" to the
second, were then asked a series of questions to distinguish persons who
were in temporary jobs from those who, for personal reasons, were
temporarily holding jobs that offered the opportunity of ongoing
employment. For example, students holding part-time jobs in fast-food
restaurants while in school might view those jobs as temporary, since they
may intend to leave them at the end of the school year. The jobs
themselves, however, would be filled by other workers once the students
leave.
Jobs were defined as being short term or temporary if the worker was
working only until the completion of a specific project, temporarily
replacing another worker, being hired for a fixed time period, filling a
seasonal job that is only available during certain times of the year, or if
other business conditions dictated that the job was short term.
Individuals who expected to work at their current job for a year or less
for personal reasons, such as returning to school, retiring, or obtaining
another job, were asked if they would continue working at that job were it
not for that personal reason. If the job could not have continued, the
worker would be classified as contingent, provided that the other
conditions of the definition were met.
Workers also were asked how long they expected to stay in their
current job and how long they had been with their current employer. The
rationale for asking how long an individual expects to remain in his or her
current job was that being able to hold a job for a year or more could be
taken as evidence of at least an implicit contract for ongoing employment.
In other words, the employer's need for the worker's services is not likely
to evaporate tomorrow. By the same token, the information on how long a
worker has been with the employer shows whether a job has been ongoing.
Having remained with an employer for more than a year may be taken as
evidence that, at least in the past, there was an explicit or implicit
contract for continuing employment.
To assess the impact of altering some of the defining factors on the
estimated size of the contingent workforce, three measures of contingent
employment were developed. Under estimate 1, which is the narrowest,
contingent workers are wage and salary workers who indicated that they
expected to work in their current job for 1 year or less and who had worked
for their current employer for 1 year or less. Self-employed workers, both
incorporated and unincorporated, and independent contractors are excluded
from the count of contingent workers under estimate 1; the rationale was
that people who work for themselves, by definition, have ongoing employment
arrangements, although they may face financial risks. Individuals who
worked for temporary help agencies or contract companies are considered
contingent under estimate 1 only if they expect their employment
arrangement with the temporary help or contract company to last for 1 year
or less and they had worked for that company for 1 year or less. Thus,
workers employed by temporary help firms are not considered contingent if
they expect to be able to stay with the firms for more than a year or have
been with the firms for that amount of time, even if the places they are
assigned to work by the firms change frequently.
Estimate 2 expands the measure of the contingent work force by
including the self-employed--both the incorporated and the unincorporated--
and independent contractors who expect to be, and had been, in such
employment arrangements for 1 year or less. (The questions asked of the
self-employed are different from those asked of wage and salary workers.)
In addition, temporary help and contract company workers were classified as
contingent under estimate 2 if they had worked and expected to work for the
customers to whom they were assigned for 1 year or less. For example, a
"temp" secretary, who is sent to a different customer each week but has
worked for the same temporary help firm for more than 1 year and expects to
be able to continue with that firm indefinitely, is contingent under
estimate 2, but not under estimate 1. In contrast, a "temp" who is
assigned to a single client for more than a year and expects to be able to
stay with that client for more than a year is not counted as contingent
under either estimate.
Estimate 3 expands the count of contingency by removing the 1-year
requirement on both expected duration of the job and current tenure for
wage and salary workers. Thus, the estimate effectively includes all the
wage and salary workers who do not expect their employment to last, except
for those who, for personal reasons, expect to leave jobs that they would
otherwise be able to keep. Thus, a worker who had held a job for 5 years
could be considered contingent if he or she now viewed the job as
temporary. These conditions on expected and current tenure were not
relaxed for the self-employed and independent contractors, because they
were asked a different set of questions from wage and salary workers.
Defining alternative employment arrangements. To provide estimates of the
number of workers in alternative employment arrangements, the February 1995
CPS supplement included questions about whether a job was arranged by a
temporary help agency or contract company. In addition, respondents were
asked if they were on-call workers, day laborers, or independent
contractors. (See table B for the wording of the questions.)
The estimate of independent contractors includes all those who
identified themselves as independent contractors, consultants, and free-
lance workers in the supplement, regardless of whether they were identified
as wage and salary workers or self-employed in the responses to basic CPS
labor force status questions. In asking the self-employed if they were
independent contractors, an attempt was being made to distinguish the self-
employed--both the incorporated and unincorporated--who consider themselves
to be independent contractors, consultants, or free-lance workers from
those self-employed who were business operators such as shop owners or
restaurateurs. (Among those identified as independent contractors, 85
percent were identified as self-employed in the main questionnaire, while
15 percent were identified as wage and salary workers. Conversely, about
half of the self-employed--incorporated and unincorporated combined--
identified themselves as independent contractors.) Analysts may be tempted
to classify independent contractors who were identified as wage and salary
workers in the main questionnaire as workers who otherwise would have been
employees of the company where they are working or individuals who were
"converted" to independent contractors to avoid legal requirements.
However, the basic CPS questionnaire does not permit this distinction. Two
individuals who are in exactly the same work arrangement may answer the
question from the main questionnaire--"Were you employed by government, by
a private company, a non-profit organization, or were you self-employed?"--
differently depending on their interpretation of the words "employed" and
"self-employed." It was not possible with the CPS supplement to collect
information on the legal aspects of employment arrangements.
On-call workers are persons who are called into work only when they
are needed and those who work as day laborers. Persons with regularly
scheduled work which might include periods of being "on call" to perform
work at unusual hours, such as medical residents, were not included in this
category.
Workers who are paid by temporary help agencies were identified by two
questions. Individuals who said their jobs were temporary were asked, "Are
you paid by a temporary help agency?" Those who did not say that their
jobs were temporary were asked, "Even though you told me your job is not
temporary, were you paid by a temporary help agency?" The phrase "paid by
a temporary help agency" was used to avoid missing individuals who
considered their employer to be the client to whom they were assigned,
rather than the temporary help agency. The second question was asked to
avoid undercounting individuals whose employment was arranged by a
temporary help agency but who did not consider the arrangement temporary.
To the extent that permanent staff of temporary help agencies indicate that
they are paid by their agencies, the estimate of the number of workers
whose employment was mediated by temporary help agencies is overstated.
To be classified as a contract worker, an individual had to be
identified as working for a "contract company," usually working for only
one customer, and usually working at the customer's worksite. The last two
requirements were imposed to focus on workers whose employment appeared to
be very closely tied to the firm for which they are performing the work,
rather than include all workers employed by firms that provide services.
In addition to information on contingent and alternative employment,
the February supplement collected a variety of other information relating
to employment arrangements, earnings, and the quality of jobs. Analysis of
this information, as well as a more in-depth description and analysis of
contingent and alternative employment arrangements, will appear in future
articles in the Monthly Labor Review. Persons interested in additional
information about this report or the February supplement should contact
Thomas Nardone at (202) 606-6378 or Anne Polivka at (202) 606-7395.
Information in this report is made available to sensory impaired
individuals upon request. Voice phone: (202) 606-7828; TDD phone: (202)
606-5897; TDD message referral phone: 1-800-326-2577. This information is
in the public domain and, with appropriate credit, may be reproduced
without permission.
Table 1. Employed contingent and noncontingent workers by selected characteristics,
February 1995
(In thousands)
__________________________________________________________________________________________
| | Contingent workers |
| |__________________________|Noncon-
Characteristic | Total |Estimate|Estimate|Estimate|tingent
| Employed | 1 | 2 | 3 |workers
_________________________________________|____________|________|________|________|________
| | | | |
Age and sex | | | | |
Total, 16 years and over..............| 123,208 | 2,739 | 3,422 | 6,034 | 117,174
16 to 19 years...........................| 5,635 | 456 | 521 | 645 | 4,990
20 to 24 years...........................| 12,421 | 685 | 758 | 1,196 | 11,225
25 to 34 years...........................| 32,138 | 712 | 940 | 1,587 | 30,551
35 to 44 years...........................| 34,113 | 507 | 678 | 1,265 | 32,848
45 to 54 years...........................| 23,980 | 225 | 326 | 760 | 23,219
55 to 64 years...........................| 11,370 | 103 | 127 | 355 | 11,014
65 years and over........................| 3,551 | 49 | 73 | 225 | 3,326
Men, 16 years and over................| 66,290 | 1,350 | 1,689 | 2,995 | 63,295
16 to 19 years...........................| 2,820 | 197 | 234 | 291 | 2,528
20 to 24 years...........................| 6,634 | 329 | 366 | 586 | 6,049
25 to 34 years...........................| 17,566 | 354 | 465 | 833 | 16,733
35 to 44 years...........................| 18,317 | 274 | 352 | 615 | 17,703
45 to 54 years...........................| 12,694 | 91 | 144 | 341 | 12,353
55 to 64 years...........................| 6,187 | 72 | 83 | 215 | 5,972
65 years and over........................| 2,072 | 32 | 44 | 115 | 1,957
Women, 16 years and over..............| 56,918 | 1,389 | 1,733 | 3,039 | 53,879
16 to 19 years...........................| 2,816 | 259 | 287 | 354 | 2,461
20 to 24 years...........................| 5,786 | 356 | 392 | 610 | 5,176
25 to 34 years...........................| 14,572 | 358 | 475 | 754 | 13,818
35 to 44 years...........................| 15,796 | 233 | 326 | 651 | 15,145
45 to 54 years...........................| 11,286 | 134 | 181 | 419 | 10,866
55 to 64 years...........................| 5,183 | 32 | 44 | 141 | 5,043
65 years and over........................| 1,479 | 17 | 29 | 109 | 1,370
| | | | |
Race and Hispanic origin | | | | |
White....................................| 105,239 | 2,192 | 2,741 | 4,880 | 100,359
Black....................................| 13,108 | 382 | 464 | 804 | 12,304
Hispanic origin..........................| 10,441 | 373 | 443 | 682 | 9,759
| | | | |
Full- or part-time status | | | | |
Full-time workers........................| 99,240 | 1,449 | 1,835 | 3,444 | 95,796
Part-time workers........................| 23,968 | 1,290 | 1,587 | 2,590 | 21,378
_________________________________________|____________|________|________|________|________
NOTE: Noncontingent workers are those who do not fall into any estimate of
"contingent" workers. Detail for the above race and Hispanic-origin groups will not sum
to totals because data for the "other races" group are not presented and Hispanics are
included in both the white and black population groups. Detail for other characteristics
may not sum to totals due to rounding.
Table 2. Percent distribution of employed contingent and noncontingent workers by selected
characteristics, February 1995
________________________________________________________________________________________
| Contingent workers |Noncon-
|______________________________________|tingent
Characteristic | Estimate 1 | Estimate 2 | Estimate 3 |workers
_________________________________________|____________|____________|____________|________
| | | |
Age and sex | | | |
Total, 16 years and over..............| 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0
16 to 19 years...........................| 16.6 | 15.2 | 10.7 | 4.3
20 to 24 years...........................| 25.0 | 22.2 | 19.8 | 9.6
25 to 34 years...........................| 26.0 | 27.5 | 26.3 | 26.1
35 to 44 years...........................| 18.5 | 19.8 | 21.0 | 28.0
45 to 54 years...........................| 8.2 | 9.5 | 12.6 | 19.8
55 to 64 years...........................| 3.8 | 3.7 | 5.9 | 9.4
65 years and over........................| 1.8 | 2.1 | 3.7 | 2.8
Men, 16 years and over.............. | 49.3 | 49.3 | 49.6 | 54.0
16 to 19 years...........................| 7.2 | 6.8 | 4.8 | 2.2
20 to 24 years...........................| 12.0 | 10.7 | 9.7 | 5.2
25 to 34 years...........................| 12.9 | 13.6 | 13.8 | 14.3
35 to 44 years...........................| 10.0 | 10.3 | 10.2 | 15.1
45 to 54 years...........................| 3.3 | 4.2 | 5.7 | 10.5
55 to 64 years...........................| 2.6 | 2.4 | 3.6 | 5.1
65 years and over........................| 1.2 | 1.3 | 1.9 | 1.7
Women, 16 years and over..............| 50.7 | 50.6 | 50.4 | 46.0
16 to 19 years...........................| 9.5 | 8.4 | 5.9 | 2.1
20 to 24 years...........................| 13.0 | 11.5 | 10.1 | 4.4
25 to 34 years...........................| 13.1 | 13.9 | 12.5 | 11.8
35 to 44 years...........................| 8.5 | 9.5 | 10.8 | 12.9
45 to 54 years...........................| 4.9 | 5.3 | 6.9 | 9.3
55 to 64 years...........................| 1.2 | 1.3 | 2.3 | 4.3
65 years and over........................| .6 | .8 | 1.8 | 1.2
| | | |
Race and Hispanic origin | | | |
White....................................| 80.0 | 80.1 | 80.9 | 85.6
Black....................................| 13.9 | 13.6 | 13.3 | 10.5
Hispanic origin..........................| 13.6 | 12.9 | 11.3 | 8.3
| | | |
Full- or part-time status | | | |
Full-time workers........................| 52.9 | 53.6 | 57.1 | 81.8
Part-time workers........................| 47.1 | 46.4 | 42.9 | 18.2
_________________________________________|____________|____________|____________|________
NOTE: Noncontingent workers are those who do not fall into any estimate of
"contingent" workers. Detail for the above race and Hispanic-origin groups will not sum
to totals because data for the "other races" group are not presented and Hispanics are
included in both the white and black population groups. Detail for other characteristics
may not sum to totals due to rounding.
Table 3. Employed contingent and noncontingent workers by school enrollment and
educational attainment, February 1995
(Percent distribution)
________________________________________________________________________________________
| Contingent workers |Noncon-
|______________________________________|tingent
Characteristic | Estimate 1 | Estimate 2 | Estimate 3 |workers
_________________________________________|____________|____________|____________|________
| | | |
School enrollment | | | |
Total, 16 to 24 years (thousands).....| 1,142 | 1,279 | 1,841 | 16,215
Percent...............................| 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0
Enrolled.................................| 55.3 | 53.7 | 58.1 | 38.4
Not enrolled.............................| 44.7 | 46.3 | 41.9 | 61.6
Less than a high school diploma.......| 12.2 | 13.4 | 11.4 | 9.4
High school graduates, no college.....| 13.7 | 14.5 | 15.7 | 27.8
Less than a bachelor's degree.........| 10.3 | 10.0 | 8.5 | 17.0
College graduates.....................| 8.5 | 8.3 | 6.4 | 7.4
| | | |
Educational attainment | | | |
Total, 25 to 64 years (thousands).....| 1,547 | 2,070 | 3,968 | 97,633
Percent...............................| 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0
Less than a high school diploma..........| 14.0 | 13.6 | 12.0 | 9.6
High school graduates, no college........| 27.9 | 27.5 | 27.3 | 32.4
Less than a bachelor's degree............| 31.2 | 31.3 | 27.5 | 29.0
College graduates........................| 27.0 | 27.7 | 33.2 | 28.9
______________________________________________________|____________|____________|_________
NOTE: Noncontingent workers are those who do not fall into any estimate of
"contingent" workers. Detail may not sum to totals due to rounding.
Table 4. Employed contingent and noncontingent workers by occupation and industry,
February 1995
(Percent distribution)
__________________________________________________________________________________________
| Contingent workers |
|________________________________|Noncontingent
Characteristic | Estimate | Estimate | Estimate | workers
| 1 | 2 | 3 |
___________________________________________|__________|__________|__________|_____________
| | | |
Occupation | | | |
Total, 16 years and over (thousands)....| 2,739 | 3,422 | 6,034 | 117,174
Percent.................................| 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0
Executive, administrative, and managerial..| 4.9 | 5.5 | 7.6 | 14.0
Professional specialty.....................| 17.2 | 16.6 | 20.6 | 14.6
Technicians and related support............| 1.8 | 2.2 | 2.7 | 3.2
Sales occupations..........................| 6.2 | 6.9 | 6.4 | 12.2
Administrative support, including clerical.| 20.9 | 18.7 | 17.7 | 15.0
Service occupations........................| 17.9 | 19.8 | 16.0 | 13.4
Precision production, craft, and repair....| 11.0 | 11.3 | 10.0 | 10.8
Operators, fabricators, and laborers.......| 17.4 | 16.1 | 15.8 | 14.2
Farming, forestry, and fishing.............| 2.6 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 2.6
| | | |
Industry | | | |
Total, 16 years and over (thousands)....| 2,739 | 3,422 | 6,034 | 117,174
Percent.................................| 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0
Agriculture................................| 2.8 | 3.0 | 2.6 | 2.6
Mining.....................................| .3 | .2 | .3 | .6
Construction...............................| 11.5 | 11.8 | 9.8 | 5.5
Manufacturing..............................| 10.0 | 9.5 | 10.8 | 17.1
Transportation and public utilities........| 3.8 | 3.2 | 4.2 | 7.2
Wholesale and retail trade.................| 13.4 | 13.4 | 12.0 | 20.9
Finance, insurance, and real estate........| 2.0 | 1.9 | 2.6 | 6.7
Services...................................| 53.5 | 54.8 | 54.0 | 34.5
Public administration......................| 2.7 | 2.2 | 3.6 | 5.0
___________________________________________|__________|__________|__________|___________
NOTE: Noncontingent workers are those who do not fall into any estimate of
"contingent" workers. Detail may not sum to totals due to rounding.
Table 5. Employed workers with alternative and traditional work arrangements by selected
characteristics, February 1995
(In thousands)
__________________________________________________________________________________________
| | Workers with alternative arrangements|
| |______________________________________|Workers
| | | | | Workers| with
| | Inde- | On-call |Temporary|provided| tradi-
Characteristic | Total | pendent | workers | help | by | tional
| Employed | contrac-| and day | agency |contract|arrange-
| | tors | laborers| workers| firms | ments
_______________________________|__________|_________|_________|_________|________|________
| | | | | |
Age and sex | | | | | |
Total, 16 years and over....| 123,208 | 8,309 | 2,078 | 1,181 | 652 | 111,052
16 to 19 years.................| 5,635 | 125 | 165 | 62 | 16 | 5,267
20 to 24 years.................| 12,421 | 197 | 261 | 233 | 83 | 11,649
25 to 34 years.................| 32,138 | 1,639 | 511 | 403 | 254 | 29,357
35 to 44 years.................| 34,113 | 2,559 | 492 | 251 | 152 | 30,679
45 to 54 years.................| 23,980 | 2,099 | 326 | 143 | 77 | 21,344
55 to 64 years.................| 11,370 | 1,131 | 191 | 68 | 44 | 9,938
65 years and over..............| 3,551 | 559 | 132 | 21 | 27 | 2,817
Men, 16 years and over......| 66,290 | 5,595 | 1,042 | 557 | 466 | 58,678
16 to 19 years.................| 2,820 | 71 | 85 | 35 | 9 | 2,620
20 to 24 years.................| 6,634 | 135 | 154 | 135 | 42 | 6,170
25 to 34 years.................| 17,566 | 1,051 | 270 | 198 | 194 | 15,877
35 to 44 years.................| 18,317 | 1,746 | 245 | 91 | 124 | 16,122
45 to 54 years.................| 12,694 | 1,389 | 141 | 52 | 37 | 11,083
55 to 64 years.................| 6,187 | 795 | 76 | 33 | 34 | 5,248
65 years and over..............| 2,072 | 409 | 70 | 13 | 27 | 1,559
Women, 16 years and over....| 56,918 | 2,714 | 1,036 | 624 | 186 | 52,373
16 to 19 years.................| 2,816 | 54 | 80 | 27 | 7 | 2,647
20 to 24 years.................| 5,786 | 63 | 107 | 98 | 40 | 5,480
25 to 34 years.................| 14,572 | 588 | 242 | 205 | 60 | 13,481
35 to 44 years.................| 15,796 | 813 | 247 | 160 | 28 | 14,557
45 to 54 years.................| 11,286 | 710 | 184 | 91 | 41 | 10,261
55 to 64 years.................| 5,183 | 336 | 115 | 34 | 10 | 4,689
65 years and over..............| 1,479 | 150 | 63 | 9 | - | 1,258
| | | | | |
Race and Hispanic origin | | | | | |
White..........................| 105,239 | 7,671 | 1,745 | 859 | 541 | 94,473
Black..........................| 13,108 | 416 | 229 | 257 | 76 | 12,143
Hispanic origin............... | 10,441 | 431 | 259 | 134 | 55 | 9,566
| | | | | |
Full- or part-time status | | | | | |
Full-time workers............. | 99,240 | 6,179 | 945 | 938 | 548 | 90,683
Part-time workers............. | 23,968 | 2,130 | 1,134 | 242 | 104 | 20,368
_______________________________|__________|_________|_________|_________|________|________
NOTE: Workers with traditional arrangements are those who do not fall into any of
the "alternative arrangements" categories. Detail may not sum to total employed because a
small number of workers are both "on call" and "provided by contract firms." Detail for
the above race and Hispanic-origin groups will not sum to totals because data for the
"other races" group are not presented and Hispanics are included in both the white and
black population groups.
Table 6. Employed workers with alternative and traditional work arrangements by selected
characteristics, February 1995
(Percent distribution)
________________________________________________________________________________________
| Workers with alternative arrangements |
|______________________________________________| Workers
| | | | Workers | with
| Inde- | On-call | Temporary | provided | tradi-
Characteristic | pendent | workers | help | by | tional
| contrac- | and day | agency | contract | arrange-
| tors | laborers | workers | firms | ments
_______________________________|___________|___________|___________|__________|_________
| | | | |
Age and sex | | | | |
Total, 16 years and over....| 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0
16 to 19 years.................| 1.5 | 7.9 | 5.2 | 2.5 | 4.7
20 to 24 years.................| 2.4 | 12.6 | 19.7 | 12.7 | 10.5
25 to 34 years.................| 19.7 | 24.6 | 34.1 | 39.0 | 26.4
35 to 44 years.................| 30.8 | 23.7 | 21.3 | 23.3 | 27.6
45 to 54 years.................| 25.3 | 15.7 | 12.1 | 11.8 | 19.2
55 to 64 years.................| 13.6 | 9.2 | 5.8 | 6.7 | 8.9
65 years and over..............| 6.7 | 6.4 | 1.8 | 4.1 | 2.5
Men, 16 years and over......| 67.3 | 50.1 | 47.2 | 71.5 | 52.8
16 to 19 years.................| .9 | 4.1 | 3.0 | 1.4 | 2.4
20 to 24 years.................| 1.6 | 7.4 | 11.4 | 6.4 | 5.6
25 to 34 years.................| 12.6 | 13.0 | 16.8 | 29.8 | 14.3
35 to 44 years.................| 21.0 | 11.8 | 7.7 | 19.0 | 14.5
45 to 54 years.................| 16.7 | 6.8 | 4.4 | 5.7 | 10.0
55 to 64 years.................| 9.6 | 3.7 | 2.8 | 5.2 | 4.7
65 years and over..............| 4.9 | 3.4 | 1.1 | 4.1 | 1.4
Women, 16 years and over....| 32.7 | 49.9 | 52.8 | 28.5 | 47.2
16 to 19 years.................| .6 | 3.8 | 2.3 | 1.1 | 2.4
20 to 24 years.................| .8 | 5.1 | 8.3 | 6.1 | 4.9
25 to 34 years.................| 7.1 | 11.6 | 17.4 | 9.2 | 12.1
35 to 44 years.................| 9.8 | 11.9 | 13.5 | 4.3 | 13.1
45 to 54 years.................| 8.5 | 8.9 | 7.7 | 6.3 | 9.2
55 to 64 years.................| 4.0 | 5.5 | 2.9 | 1.5 | 4.2
65 years and over..............| 1.8 | 3.0 | .8 | - | 1.1
| | | | |
Race and Hispanic origin | | | | |
White..........................| 92.3 | 84.0 | 72.7 | 83.0 | 85.1
Black..........................| 5.0 | 11.0 | 21.8 | 11.7 | 10.9
Hispanic origin................| 5.2 | 12.5 | 11.3 | 8.4 | 8.6
| | | | |
Full- or part-time status | | | | |
Full-time workers..............| 74.4 | 45.5 | 79.4 | 84.0 | 81.7
Part-time workers..............| 25.6 | 54.6 | 20.5 | 16.0 | 18.3
_______________________________|___________|___________|___________|__________|_________
NOTE: Workers with traditional arrangements are those who do not fall into any of
the "alternative arrangements" categories. Detail for the above race and Hispanic-origin
groups will not sum to totals because data for the "other races" group are not
presented and Hispanics are included in both the white and black population groups. Detail
for other characteristics may not sum to totals due to rounding.
Table 7. Employed workers with alternative and traditional work arrangements by school
enrollment and educational attainment, February 1995
(Percent distribution)
__________________________________________________________________________________________
| Workers with alternative arrangements|
|______________________________________|Workers
| | | | Workers| with
| Inde- | On-call |Temporary|provided| tradi-
Characteristic | pendent | workers | help | by | tional
| contrac-| and day | agency |contract|arrange-
| tors | laborers| workers| firms | ments
__________________________________________|_________|_________|_________|________|________
| | | | |
School enrollment | | | | |
Total, 16 to 24 years (thousands)......| 322 | 426 | 295 | 98 | 16,917
Percent................................| 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0
Enrolled..................................| 37.9 | 43.7 | 20.7 | 18.4 | 40.8
Not enrolled..............................| 62.1 | 56.3 | 79.3 | 81.6 | 59.2
Less than a high school diploma........| 16.1 | 21.8 | 16.6 | 8.2 | 9.0
High school graduates, no college......| 24.8 | 19.7 | 30.2 | 25.8 | 26.7
Less than a bachelor's degree..........| 14.2 | 8.7 | 20.7 | 22.7 | 16.2
College graduates......................| 7.1 | 6.1 | 11.9 | 24.7 | 7.2
| | | | |
Educational attainment | | | | |
Total, 25 to 64 years (thousands)......| 7,428 | 1,520 | 864 | 527 | 91,318
Percent................................| 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0
Less than a high school diploma...........| 8.7 | 13.4 | 14.2 | 9.5 | 9.7
High school graduates, no college.........| 29.1 | 35.1 | 33.4 | 29.8 | 32.5
Less than a bachelor's degree.............| 27.9 | 30.7 | 32.1 | 30.2 | 29.0
College graduates.........................| 34.4 | 20.8 | 20.3 | 30.6 | 28.9
__________________________________________|_________|_________|_________|________|________
NOTE: Workers with traditional arrangements are those who do not fall into any of
the "alternative arrangements" categories. Detail may not sum to totals due to rounding.
Table 8. Employed workers with alternative and traditional work arrangements by occupation
and industry, February 1995
(Percent distribution)
__________________________________________________________________________________________
|Workers with alternative arrangements|
|_____________________________________|Workers
| | | | Workers| with
| Inde- | On-call |Temporary|provided| tradi-
Characteristic |pendent | workers | help | by | tional
|contrac-| and day | agency |contract|arrange-
| tors | laborers| workers| firms | ments
___________________________________________|________|_________|_________|________|________
| | | | |
Occupation | | | | |
Total, 16 years and over (thousands)....| 8,309 | 2,078 | 1,181 | 652 | 111,052
Percent.................................| 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0
Executive, administrative, and managerial..| 18.6 | 2.9 | 6.5 | 5.7 | 13.6
Professional specialty.....................| 16.3 | 20.9 | 8.3 | 25.6 | 14.7
Technicians and related support............| 1.1 | 1.5 | 3.7 | 6.9 | 3.4
Sales occupations..........................| 18.8 | 6.0 | 2.6 | 3.2 | 11.7
Administrative support, including clerical.| 3.8 | 9.5 | 30.1 | 4.8 | 16.0
Service occupations........................| 10.6 | 19.7 | 9.0 | 27.8 | 13.6
Precision production, craft, and repair....| 19.2 | 14.3 | 5.6 | 14.6 | 10.1
Operators, fabricators, and laborers.......| 6.5 | 20.5 | 33.2 | 10.4 | 14.6
Farming, forestry, and fishing.............| 5.1 | 4.7 | 1.0 | .9 | 2.4
| | | | |
Industry | | | | |
Total, 16 years and over (thousands)....| 8,309 | 2,078 | 1,181 | 652 | 111,052
Percent.................................| 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0
Agriculture................................| 5.0 | 4.4 | .4 | .3 | 2.4
Mining.....................................| .2 | .5 | .2 | 2.4 | .6
Construction...............................| 21.2 | 15.2 | 2.8 | 8.4 | 4.4
Manufacturing..............................| 5.0 | 5.9 | 33.4 | 17.6 | 17.9
Transportation and public utilities........| 5.0 | 8.7 | 7.6 | 13.4 | 7.2
Wholesale and retail trade.................| 13.2 | 13.8 | 8.1 | 6.0 | 21.4
Finance, insurance, and real estate........| 9.6 | 1.8 | 7.5 | 6.9 | 6.4
Services...................................| 40.6 | 46.0 | 38.7 | 32.3 | 34.4
Public administration......................| .3 | 3.3 | 1.2 | 12.6 | 5.4
___________________________________________|________|_________|_________|________|________
NOTE: Workers with traditional arrangements are those who do not fall into any of
the "alternative arrangements" categories. Detail may not sum to totals due to rounding.
Table 9. Employed contingent and noncontingent workers and those
with alternative and traditional work arrangements by health
insurance coverage, February 1995
________________________________________________________________________
| | Percent with health
| | insurance coverage
| |_____________________
Characteristic | Total | | Provided
| employed | Total | by
|(thousands)| | employer
______________________________________|___________|__________|___________
| | |
Contingent workers: | | |
Estimate 1.........................| 2,739 | 57.2 | 10.2
Estimate 2.........................| 3,422 | 58.1 | 8.6
Estimate 3.........................| 6,034 | 64.9 | 20.4
Noncontingent workers.................| 117,174 | 82.2 | 53.9
| | |
With alternative arrangements: | | |
Independent contractors............| 8,309 | 72.6 | (1)
On-call workers and day laborers...| 2,078 | 63.5 | 16.9
Temporary help agency workers......| 1,181 | 44.9 | 5.7
Workers provided by contract firms.| 652 | 69.9 | 42.5
With traditional arrangements.........| 111,052 | 82.7 | 57.2
______________________________________|___________|__________|____________
1/ Not applicable.
NOTE: Noncontingent workers are those who do not fall into any
estimate of "contingent" workers. Workers with traditional arrangements
are those who do not fall into any of the "alternative arrangements"
categories. Figures for contingent and noncontingent workers with health
insurance coverage provided by an employer exclude the self-employed
(incorporated and unincorporated). Independent contractors who were
either contingent or noncontingent workers also are excluded.
Table 10. Employed contingent workers by their preference for contingent
or noncontingent work arrangements, February 1995
(Percent distribution)
_________________________________________________________________________________
| Estimate | Estimate | Estimate
Preference | 1 | 2 | 3
__________________________________________|____________|____________|____________
| | |
Total, 16 years and over (thousands)...| 2,739 | 3,422 | 6,034
Percent................................| 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0
Prefer noncontingent arrangement..........| 64.1 | 61.2 | 55.8
Prefer contingent arrangement.............| 29.8 | 32.6 | 30.5
It depends................................| 2.4 | 2.5 | 3.1
Not available.............................| 3.6 | 3.7 | 10.7
__________________________________________|____________|____________|____________
NOTE: Noncontingent workers are those who do not fall into any estimate of
"contingent" workers. Detail may not sum to totals due to rounding.
Table 11. Employed workers with alternative work arrangements by their
preference for a traditional work arrangement, February 1995
(Percent distribution)
_______________________________________________________________________________
| | On-call | Temporary
|Independent| workers | help
Preference |contractors| and day | agency
| | laborers | workers
___________________________________________|___________|___________|___________
| | |
Total, 16 years and over (thousands)....| 8,309 | 2,078 | 1,181
Percent.................................| 100.0 | 100.0 | 100.0
Prefer traditional arrangement.............| 9.8 | 57.9 | 63.3
Prefer indirect or alternative arrangement.| 82.5 | 35.8 | 26.6
It depends.................................| 5.1 | 4.0 | 8.1
Not available..............................| 2.6 | 2.4 | 1.9
___________________________________________|___________|___________|____________
NOTE: Detail may not sum to totals due to rounding.
Table 12. Employed workers with alternative and traditional work arrangements by
contingent and noncontingent employment, February 1995
_____________________________________________________________________________________
| | Percent distribution
| |__________________________________
| | Contingent workers |
Arrangements | |__________________________|Noncon-
| Total |Estimate|Estimate|Estimate|tingent
|(thousands)| 1 | 2 | 3 |workers
________________________________________|___________|________|________|________|_______
| | | | |
With alternative arrangements: | | | | |
Independent contractor...............| 8,309 | (1) | 3.8 | 3.8 | 96.2
On-call workers and day laborers.....| 2,078 | 21.5 | 21.8 | 38.1 | 61.9
Temporary help agency workers........| 1,181 | 39.4 | 48.0 | 66.5 | 33.5
Workers provided by contract firms...| 652 | 7.7 | 11.7 | 19.8 | 80.2
With traditional arrangements...........| 111,052 | 1.6 | 1.8 | 3.6 | 96.4
________________________________________|___________|________|________|________|_______
1/ Not applicable.
NOTE: Noncontingent workers are those who do not fall into any estimate of
"contingent" workers. Workers with traditional arrangements are those who do not fall
into any of the "alternative arrangements" categories. Independent contractors, as well
as the self-employed, are excluded from estimate 1.
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics
Contact: (cpsinfo@bls.gov) Division of Labor Force Statistics-BLS
Last revised: September 04, 1997
URL: http://www.bls.census.gov/cps/pub/conemp_0294.htm
CPS Publications - Contingent Workers Page
CPS Main Page