CONTINGENT AND ALTERNATIVE EMPLOYMENT ARRANGEMENTS,
FEBRUARY 1999
The proportion of U.S. workers holding contingent jobs was about
unchanged between February 1997 and February 1999, the Bureau of Labor
Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported. Contingent
workers are persons who hold jobs that are temporary or not expected to
last. Using three alternative measures, contingent workers comprised
1.9 to 4.3 percent of total employment in February 1999. (See table A.)
In February 1997, the estimates were not much different, ranging from 1.9 to
4.4 percent; in February 1995, the first year the survey was conducted, the
estimates ranged from 2.2 to 4.9 percent. The period between February 1995
and February 1999 was one of strong employment growth and falling
unemployment.
The analysis in this release focuses on the broadest estimate of
contingent workers--all those who do not expect their current job to last.
The February 1999 survey also identified workers with alternative
employment arrangements. There were 8.2 million workers (6.3 percent of
the total employed) who were identified as independent contractors, 2.0
million (1.5 percent) who worked on-call, 1.2 million (0.9 percent) who
worked for temporary help agencies, and 769,000 (0.6 percent) who worked
for contract firms. Between February 1997 and February 1999, the proportion
of workers employed as independent contractors declined, while the proportions
employed in the other three alternative work arrangements were little changed.
From February 1995 to February 1997, the proportions in all four categories
were little changed.
A worker's employment arrangement could be both contingent and
alternative, since contingent work is defined separately from the four
alternative employment arrangements. The proportion of workers in
alternative employment arrangements who also are classified as contingent
(under estimate 3 in table A) ranged from 3 percent for independent
contractors to 56 percent for workers employed by temporary help agencies.
The results of the February 1999 survey showed that the characteristics
of workers with contingent jobs and in alternative employment arrangements
were similar to those in the prior two surveys. These surveys have been
conducted as supplements to the Current Population Survey, a monthly survey
of about 50,000 households that is the primary source of information on the
nation's labor force. A description of the concepts and definitions in the
supplement is shown in the Technical Note beginning on page 7. Results of
the February 1999 survey included the following highlights:
--Under the broadest estimate, a total of 5.6 million workers held contingent
jobs. These workers were more than twice as likely as noncontingent workers
to be under the age of 25. Contingent workers also were somewhat more likely
to be female; more than half (51 percent) of all contingent workers were
women, compared with 47 percent of noncontingent workers.
--Young contingent workers were more likely to be students than their
noncontingent counterparts. Among 16- to 24-year-olds, 66 percent of
contingent workers were enrolled in school, compared with about 40 percent
of noncontingent workers.
Table A. Contingent workers and workers in alternative arrangements
as a percent of total employment, February 1999
----------------------------------------------------------------------
|Percent of
Definition and alternative estimates | total
of contingent workers | employed
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Contingent workers are those who do not have an
implicit or explicit contract for ongoing employ-
ment. Persons who do not expect to continue in
their jobs for personal reasons such as retirement
or returning to school are not considered contin-
gent 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 the 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 with|
the specific client to whom they were assigned | 1.9
|
Estimate 2 |
|
Workers including the self-employed and indepen- |
dent 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 their tenure|
with the temporary help or contract firm. | 2.3
|
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 independent |
contractors for 1 year or less. | 4.3
|
--------------------------------------------------|
Type of alternative arrangement |
--------------------------------------------------|
|
Independent contractors |
Workers who were identified as independent |
contractors, independent consultants, or free- |
lance workers, whether they were self-employed or |
wage and salary workers. | 6.3
|
On-call workers |
Workers who are called to work only as needed, |
although they can be scheduled to work for several|
days or weeks in a row. | 1.5
|
Temporary help agency workers |
Workers who were paid by a temporary help agency, |
whether or not their job was temporary. | .9
|
Workers provided by contract firms |
Workers who are employed by a company that |
provides them or their services to others under |
contract, and who are usually assigned to only one|
customer and usually work at the |
customer's worksite. | .6
-----------------------------------------------------------------
--Contingent workers were found at both ends of the education spectrum.
Among 25- to 64-year olds, 12 percent of contingent workers had less than a
high school diploma, compared with 9 percent of noncontingent workers. The
proportion of contingent workers who were college graduates (39 percent) also
was higher than that for noncontingent workers (31 percent).
--Although a large proportion of contingent workers were employed part time
(44 percent), the vast majority of part-time workers (90 percent) were not
holding a contingent job.
--There was wide variation in the characteristics of workers with alternative
employment arrangements. For example, compared with workers in a traditional
arrangement, independent contractors tended to be older, white, and male,
while temporary help agency workers tended to be younger, female, black, and
Hispanic.
--A majority (53 percent) of contingent workers would have preferred a job
that was permanent.
--There was wide variation in the job satisfaction of workers with alternative
employment arrangements. The vast majority (84 percent) of independent con-
tractors were satisfied with their current arrangement. In contrast,
57 percent of temporary help agency workers and 47 percent of on-call workers
would have preferred to be in a traditional work arrangement.
--Median weekly earnings of full-time wage and salary workers with contingent
jobs were 77 percent of the earnings of noncontingent workers. Contingent
workers were much less likely than noncontingent workers to receive employer-
provided health insurance and to participate in employer-provided pension
plans.
--There was wide variation in the earnings of workers with alternative
employment arrangements. Independent contractors and contract company workers
earned more than traditional workers, while temporary help agency workers and
on-call workers earned less.
--Between February 1997 and February 1999, earnings for contract company
workers and independent contractors increased by about 22 percent, nearly
three times the rate of growth for all workers (7.8 percent).
Demographic characteristics of contingent workers
In February 1999, 5.6 million workers were classified as contingent
(using the broadest estimate). As was the case in prior surveys,
contingent workers were more than twice as likely as noncontingent workers
to be young, that is, between the ages of 16 and 24. (See tables 1 and 2.)
Many of these young contingent workers were enrolled in school at the time
of the survey; two-thirds of young contingent workers were in school,
compared with about two-fifths of noncontingent workers. The large
proportion of contingent workers enrolled in school suggests that the
flexibility of a temporary job is compatible with school attendance.
Compared with noncontingent workers, contingent workers age 25 to 64 were
found disproportionately in both lower and higher educational attainment
categories. (See table 3.)
The proportion of contingent workers who were women (51 percent) was
slightly higher than that for noncontingent workers (47 percent).
Contingent and noncontingent workers were about equally likely to be black;
about 1 in 10 of both contingent and noncontingent workers was black.
(See table 2.)
Occupation and industry of contingent workers
As was the case in previous surveys, workers with contingent jobs were
found in a wide range of occupations. Contingent workers were
overrepresented in professional specialty, administrative support, and
service occupations. They were more likely than noncontingent workers to
hold jobs in the construction and services industries. (See table 4.)
Job preferences of contingent workers
Although the majority of contingent workers (53 percent) would have
preferred to have permanent rather than temporary jobs, 39 percent of
contingent workers preferred their arrangement, slightly higher than the
proportion from the February 1997 survey (36 percent). (See table 10.)
Compensation of contingent workers
As in the prior surveys, contingent workers earned less than their
noncontingent counterparts in February 1999. Among full-time workers,
median weekly earnings for contingent workers ($415) were 77 percent of
those of noncontingent workers ($542). (See table 13.) The disparity in
earnings is due in part to the many differences in the characteristics of
contingent and noncontingent workers.
Contingent workers continued to be less likely to receive employer-
provided health insurance. In February 1999, only about 1 in 5 contingent
workers had coverage from their employer, in contrast to over one-half of
noncontingent workers. (See table 9.) Although most contingent workers
did not receive health insurance from their jobs, a substantial share--
nearly two-thirds--had health insurance from some source, including
coverage from another family member's policy or by purchasing it on their
own.
Contingent workers were much less likely than noncontingent workers to
be eligible for employer-provided pensions; only one-fifth of contingent
workers were eligible, compared with over one-half of their noncontingent
counterparts. (See table 9.) Additionally, the proportion of contingent
workers who actually participated in employer-provided pension plans (14
percent) was much lower than that for noncontingent workers (46 percent).
Alternative employment arrangements
The February 1999 survey also collected information on the number and
characteristics of workers in four alternative employment arrangements--
independent contractors, on-call workers, temporary help agency workers,
and workers employed by contract companies. Compared with the February
1997 survey, the proportion of the employed comprised of independent
contractors fell, while the proportions employed in the other three
alternative arrangements were about unchanged. The characteristics of
workers in the four alternative employment arrangements in February 1999
changed little from those of the two prior surveys. Workers in the four
groups continued to differ significantly from each other as well as from
workers in a traditional arrangement.
Independent contractors
In February 1999, 8.2 million workers were identified as independent
contractors, independent consultants, and freelance workers. This group
was the largest of the alternative arrangements, comprising 6.3 percent of
total employment. Compared with traditional workers, independent
contractors were more likely to be men, white, and at least 35 years old.
They also were more likely than traditional workers to have at least a
bachelor's degree. (See tables 5, 6, and 7.)
Independent contractors were more likely than traditional workers to
work part time. Twenty-five percent of independent contractors worked part
time, compared with 17 percent of traditional workers. Independent
contractors were concentrated in managerial, professional, sales, and
precision production occupations and in the construction and services
industries. They had a stronger preference for their employment
arrangement than did workers in the other three alternative arrangements.
Eighty-four percent preferred working as an independent contractor over a
traditional job. (See tables 6, 8, and 11.)
On-call workers
On-call workers are defined as those who report to work only when
called, although they can be scheduled to work for several days or weeks
in a row. In February 1999, there were 2.0 million on-call workers, the
second largest alternative arrangement. The demographics of on-call workers
were similar to those of traditional workers, but on-call workers were some-
what younger. About half of the on-call workers were employed part time, the
highest proportion of any employment arrangement. On-call workers were more
likely than traditional workers to hold professional, service, and operator,
fabricator, and laborer jobs and to be employed in the construction and
services industries. Forty-seven percent of on-call workers would have
preferred not to work on call. (See tables 5, 6, 8, and 11.)
Temporary help agency workers
In February 1999, an estimated 1.2 million workers said they were
employed by temporary help agencies. They were more likely than
traditional workers to be women, under the age of 25, black, and Hispanic.
They were slightly more likely to be employed part time. A higher
proportion of temporary help agency workers than traditional workers had
dropped out of high school, although over one-half had at least 1 year of
college. Temporary help agency workers were heavily concentrated in
administrative support and operator, fabricator, and laborer occupations
and in the manufacturing and services industries. Nearly three-fifths
would have preferred not to work for temporary help agencies.
(See tables 5, 6, 7, 8, and 11.)
Workers provided by contract firms
The smallest of the alternative work arrangements was contract company
employment (769,000). These individuals work for companies that provide
workers or their services to other organizations under contract and usually
were assigned to one customer at a time and worked at the customer’s
worksite. They were considerably more likely than traditional workers to
be men, and nearly two-fifths had a college degree. Eighty-seven percent
worked full time. Contract company workers were more likely to hold
professional, service, and precision production, craft, and repair jobs.
The largest share was assigned to the services industry, although
substantial proportions worked in manufacturing, transportation and public
utilities, and public administration. (See tables 5, 6, 7, and 8.)
Compensation of workers in alternative arrangements
Among full-time workers, there was wide variation in the median earnings
of those in alternative employment arrangements relative to one another and
to workers in a traditional arrangement. In February 1999, median weekly
earnings for men working full time as contract workers ($770) and
independent contractors ($689) were higher than earnings for men in
traditional arrangements ($613), while earnings for male on-call workers
($507) and temporary help agency workers ($367) were lower. Women in a
traditional arrangement earned more than women in alternative arrangements,
with the exception of contract company workers. (See table 13.)
The differences in earnings between the four alternative work
arrangements reflect in part the occupational concentration of each
arrangement. For instance, contract company workers were more likely to
hold high-paying professional specialty jobs. In contrast, workers
employed by temporary help agencies were more likely to be in
administrative support and laborer occupations, which tend to pay below-
average wages.
Workers in alternative arrangements were less likely than workers in a
traditional arrangement to have health insurance coverage from any source
in February 1999, although coverage rates among the alternative
arrangements varied widely. At 80 percent, workers employed by contract
companies had the highest rate of health insurance coverage, while
employees of temporary help agencies, at 41 percent, had the lowest rate of
coverage. Among workers in a traditional arrangement, 83 percent had
health insurance coverage.
(See table 9.)
Workers employed by contract companies were more likely to receive
health insurance coverage from their employers than temporary help agency
workers and on-call workers. (Independent contractors are not considered
because they do not have an employer in the same sense.) Among temporary
help agency workers in February 1999, fewer than 1 in 10 received health
insurance from their employer. Nearly three-fifths of workers in a
traditional arrangement had employer-provided health insurance.
Compared with workers in traditional arrangements, workers in
alternative arrangements (except those employed by contract companies) were
less likely to be eligible for employer-provided pension plans; however, as
with health insurance coverage, there was considerable variation among the
arrangements. For example, only about 1 in 10 temporary help agency
workers was eligible for their employer's pension plan. In contrast, the
eligibility rate for contract company workers, 54 percent, was equal to
that for workers in traditional arrangements. (See table 9.)
Of the four alternative work arrangements, the proportion of workers who
actually participated in an employer-provided pension plan was highest for
contract company workers (40 percent). In comparison, 23 percent of on-call
workers and only 6 percent of those employed by temporary help agencies
participated in their employer's pension plan.
Technical Note
Source of data
The data presented in this release were collected through a supplement
to the February 1999 Current Population Survey (CPS), a monthly survey of
about 50,000 households that provides the basic data on employment and
unemployment for the nation. This supplement obtained information from
workers on whether they held contingent jobs, that is, jobs which were
expected to last only a limited period of time. In addition, information
was collected on several alternative employment arrangements, namely
working as independent contractors and on call, as well as working through
temporary help agencies and contract firms.
All employed persons, except unpaid family workers, were included in the
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. Similar surveys were conducted in February 1995 and February 1997.
Reliability of the estimates
Statistics based on the CPS are subject to both sampling and nonsampling
error. When a sample, rather than the entire population, is surveyed,
there is a chance that the sample estimates may differ from the "true"
population values they represent. The exact difference, or sampling error,
varies depending on the particular sample selected, and this variability is
measured by the standard error of the estimate. There is about a 90-
percent chance, or level of confidence, that an estimate based on a sample
will differ by no more than 1.6 standard errors from the "true" population
value because of sampling error. BLS analyses are generally conducted at
the 90-percent level of confidence.
The CPS data also are affected by nonsampling error. Non-sampling error
can occur for many reasons, including the failure to sample a segment of
the population, inability to obtain information for all respondents in the
sample, inability or unwillingness of respondents to provide correct
information, and errors made in the collection or processing of the data.
For a full discussion of the reliability of data from the CPS and
information on estimating standard errors, see the "Explanatory Notes and
Estimates of Error" section of the February 1994 and subsequent issues of
Employment and Earnings.
Concepts and definitions
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, namely 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 if they
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 person 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 available only during certain times of the year, or if
other business conditions dictated that the job was short term.
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 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, as follows:
Estimate 1, which is the narrowest, measures contingent workers as 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.
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. In addition, temporary help and contract
company workers are 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 are 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. The February supplements
included questions about four alternative arrangements. Definitions of each
category, as well as the main questions used to identify workers in each
category, follow.
Independent contractors are all those who were identified as independent
contractors, consultants, and freelance 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.
Workers identified as self-employed (incorporated and unincorporated) in
the basic CPS were asked, "Are you self-employed as an independent
contractor, independent consultant, freelance worker, 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 business operators such as shop owners or
restaurateurs. Those identified as wage and salary workers in the basic
CPS were asked, "Last week, were you working as an independent contractor,
an independent consultant, or a freelance worker? That is, someone who
obtains customers on their own to provide a product or service." About 88
percent of independent contractors were identified as self-employed in the
main questionnaire, while 12 percent were identified as wage and salary
workers. Conversely, about half of the self-employed were identified as
independent contractors.
On-call workers are persons who are called into work only when they are
needed. This category includes 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?" 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.
Temporary help agency workers were all those who were paid by a temporary
help agency. 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. This category includes workers who said their job was
temporary and answered affirmatively to the question, "Are you paid by a
temporary help agency?" Also included are workers who said their job was
not temporary and answered affirmatively to the question, "Even though you
told me your job is not temporary, are you paid by a temporary help
agency?"
Workers provided by contract firms are those individuals identified as
working for a contract company, and who usually work for only one customer
and usually work 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. This
category included 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?"
Additional information
Persons interested in additional information about this release or the
February supplements should contact (202) 691-6378 (email: CPSINFO@bls.gov).
Further information on the concepts used in this release can be found in
"Contingent and alternative work arrangements, defined," in the October
1996 issue of the Monthly Labor Review.
Information in this release is made available to sensory impaired
individuals upon request. Voice phone: (202) 606-5886; TDD message referral
phone: 1-800-877-8339.
Table 1. Employed contingent and noncontingent workers by selected characteristics, February 1999
(In thousands)
Contingent workers
Characteristic Total employed Noncontingent
workers
Estimate 1 Estimate 2 Estimate 3
Age and sex
Total, 16 years and over....... 131,494 2,444 3,038 5,641 125,853
16 to 19 years..................... 6,662 511 540 744 5,918
20 to 24 years..................... 12,462 575 671 1,119 11,343
25 to 34 years..................... 30,968 565 751 1,379 29,589
35 to 44 years..................... 36,415 381 532 1,061 35,355
45 to 54 years..................... 28,144 270 359 743 27,400
55 to 64 years..................... 13,062 95 120 362 12,700
65 years and over.................. 3,781 47 64 232 3,549
Men, 16 years and over......... 70,040 1,147 1,417 2,747 67,293
16 to 19 years..................... 3,339 219 242 355 2,984
20 to 24 years..................... 6,489 306 349 570 5,919
25 to 34 years..................... 16,617 305 380 700 15,917
35 to 44 years..................... 19,603 146 227 502 19,101
45 to 54 years..................... 14,684 120 147 337 14,347
55 to 64 years..................... 7,186 32 46 177 7,009
65 years and over.................. 2,122 18 25 105 2,017
Women, 16 years and over....... 61,454 1,297 1,622 2,894 58,560
16 to 19 years..................... 3,323 292 298 389 2,934
20 to 24 years..................... 5,973 268 323 549 5,424
25 to 34 years..................... 14,351 260 372 679 13,672
35 to 44 years..................... 16,812 234 305 559 16,254
45 to 54 years..................... 13,459 150 211 406 13,053
55 to 64 years..................... 5,876 63 74 185 5,691
65 years and over.................. 1,659 29 39 127 1,532
Race and Hispanic origin
White.............................. 110,887 1,978 2,447 4,525 106,361
Black.............................. 14,620 289 386 688 13,932
Hispanic origin.................... 13,356 337 412 742 12,614
Full- or part-time status
Full-time workers.................. 107,630 1,183 1,579 3,156 104,473
Part-time workers.................. 23,864 1,261 1,459 2,485 21,380
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 1999
Contingent workers
Characteristic Noncontingent
workers
Estimate 1 Estimate 2 Estimate 3
Age and sex
Total, 16 years and over....... 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
16 to 19 years..................... 20.9 17.8 13.2 4.7
20 to 24 years..................... 23.5 22.1 19.8 9.0
25 to 34 years..................... 23.1 24.7 24.5 23.5
35 to 44 years..................... 15.6 17.5 18.8 28.1
45 to 54 years..................... 11.0 11.8 13.2 21.8
55 to 64 years..................... 3.9 4.0 6.4 10.1
65 years and over.................. 1.9 2.1 4.1 2.8
Men, 16 years and over......... 46.9 46.6 48.7 53.5
16 to 19 years..................... 9.0 8.0 6.3 2.4
20 to 24 years..................... 12.5 11.5 10.1 4.7
25 to 34 years..................... 12.5 12.5 12.4 12.6
35 to 44 years..................... 6.0 7.5 8.9 15.2
45 to 54 years..................... 4.9 4.9 6.0 11.4
55 to 64 years..................... 1.3 1.5 3.1 5.6
65 years and over.................. .7 .8 1.9 1.6
Women, 16 years and over....... 53.1 53.4 51.3 46.5
16 to 19 years..................... 12.0 9.8 6.9 2.3
20 to 24 years..................... 11.0 10.6 9.7 4.3
25 to 34 years..................... 10.6 12.2 12.0 10.9
35 to 44 years..................... 9.6 10.0 9.9 12.9
45 to 54 years..................... 6.1 7.0 7.2 10.4
55 to 64 years..................... 2.6 2.4 3.3 4.5
65 years and over.................. 1.2 1.3 2.2 1.2
Race and Hispanic origin
White.............................. 80.9 80.6 80.2 84.5
Black.............................. 11.8 12.7 12.2 11.1
Hispanic origin.................... 13.8 13.6 13.2 10.0
Full- or part-time status
Full-time workers.................. 48.4 52.0 56.0 83.0
Part-time workers.................. 51.6 48.0 44.0 17.0
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 1999
(Percent distribution)
Contingent workers
Characteristic Noncontingent
workers
Estimate 1 Estimate 2 Estimate 3
School enrollment
Total, 16 to 24 years
(thousands)..................... 1,086 1,212 1,863 17,261
Percent........................ 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
Enrolled........................... 63.8 62.1 65.9 41.4
Not enrolled....................... 36.2 37.9 34.1 58.6
Less than a high school diploma 6.3 6.5 6.3 9.4
High school graduates, no
college....................... 12.9 15.3 13.1 27.1
Less than a bachelor's degree.. 7.5 7.3 7.9 14.6
College graduates.............. 9.5 8.7 6.8 7.4
Educational attainment
Total, 25 to 64 years
(thousands)..................... 1,311 1,762 3,546 105,043
Percent........................ 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
Less than a high school diploma.... 12.7 12.6 11.9 9.1
High school graduates, no college.. 27.9 28.5 25.8 31.4
Less than a bachelor's degree...... 26.8 26.5 23.9 28.5
College graduates.................. 32.6 32.4 38.5 31.0
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 4. Employed contingent and noncontingent workers by occupation and industry,
February 1999
(Percent distribution)
Contingent workers
Characteristic Noncontingent
workers
Estimate 1 Estimate 2 Estimate 3
Occupation
Total, 16 years and over
(thousands)..................... 2,444 3,038 5,641 125,853
Percent........................ 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
Executive, administrative, and
managerial...................... 3.8 4.9 6.8 15.1
Professional specialty............. 20.1 18.2 24.7 15.4
Technicians and related support.... 3.4 3.5 3.3 3.2
Sales occupations.................. 8.0 8.8 6.8 12.3
Adminstrative support, including
clerical........................ 22.4 20.6 19.2 14.0
Services........................... 16.5 18.2 14.7 13.4
Precision production, craft, and
repair.......................... 8.4 8.7 8.4 11.1
Operators, fabricators, and
laborers........................ 14.1 13.9 12.5 13.4
Farming, forestry, and fishing..... 3.3 3.1 3.7 2.1
Industry
Total, 16 years and over
(thousands)..................... 2,444 3,038 5,641 125,853
Percent........................ 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
Agriculture........................ 3.0 3.0 3.1 2.1
Mining............................. .2 .1 .2 .4
Construction....................... 7.5 7.7 7.5 6.1
Manufacturing...................... 6.5 6.7 8.1 15.9
Transportation and public utilities 3.5 3.8 3.4 7.4
Wholesale trade.................... 2.4 2.5 2.5 4.0
Retail trade....................... 14.5 13.0 10.7 17.1
Finance, insurance, and real estate 2.2 3.0 3.0 6.9
Services........................... 57.0 57.4 58.1 35.4
Public administration.............. 3.1 2.7 3.3 4.7
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 5. Employed workers with alternative and traditional work arrangements by selected characteristics,
February 1999
(In thousands)
Workers with alternative arrangements
Total Workers with
Characteristic employed Temporary Workers traditional
Independent On-call help agency provided by arrangements
contractors workers workers contract
firms
Age and sex
Total, 16 years and over.. 131,494 8,247 2,032 1,188 769 119,109
16 to 19 years................ 6,662 76 179 68 37 6,265
20 to 24 years................ 12,462 252 202 249 87 11,637
25 to 34 years................ 30,968 1,479 470 348 235 28,410
35 to 44 years................ 36,415 2,491 507 231 216 32,960
45 to 54 years................ 28,144 2,177 303 182 132 25,332
55 to 64 years................ 13,062 1,212 205 77 47 11,505
65 years and over............. 3,781 561 167 33 14 3,000
Men, 16 years and over.... 70,040 5,459 993 501 542 62,464
16 to 19 years................ 3,339 47 93 38 29 3,116
20 to 24 years................ 6,489 158 120 114 71 6,005
25 to 34 years................ 16,617 901 203 145 168 15,179
35 to 44 years................ 19,603 1,705 235 84 155 17,422
45 to 54 years................ 14,684 1,406 155 75 72 12,966
55 to 64 years................ 7,186 814 102 27 35 6,203
65 years and over............. 2,122 427 84 18 12 1,575
Women, 16 years and over.. 61,454 2,788 1,040 687 227 56,645
16 to 19 years................ 3,323 29 86 30 8 3,149
20 to 24 years................ 5,973 93 81 134 16 5,632
25 to 34 years................ 14,351 578 266 203 67 13,231
35 to 44 years................ 16,812 786 272 147 61 15,538
45 to 54 years................ 13,459 772 149 107 60 12,367
55 to 64 years................ 5,876 397 103 50 12 5,302
65 years and over............. 1,659 133 83 15 2 1,426
Race and Hispanic origin
White......................... 110,887 7,471 1,711 883 609 100,063
Black......................... 14,620 476 258 252 97 13,542
Hispanic origin............... 13,356 506 237 161 46 12,355
Full- or part-time status
Full-time workers............. 107,630 6,195 1,003 933 668 98,766
Part-time workers............. 23,864 2,053 1,029 255 101 20,343
NOTE: Workers with traditional arrangements are those who do not fall into any of the "alternative
arrangements" categories. Detail may not add to totals because the total employed includes day laborers, an
alternative arrangement, not shown separately, and a small number of workers were 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. Detail for other characteristics may not sum to totals due to rounding.
Table 6. Employed workers with alternative and traditional work arrangements by selected characteristics,
February 1999
(Percent distribution)
Workers with alternative arrangements
Workers with
Characteristic traditional
Independent On-call Temporary help Workers arrangements
contractors workers agency workers provided by
contract firms
Age and sex
Total, 16 years and over....... 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
16 to 19 years..................... .9 8.8 5.8 4.8 5.3
20 to 24 years..................... 3.1 9.9 20.9 11.3 9.8
25 to 34 years..................... 17.9 23.1 29.3 30.5 23.9
35 to 44 years..................... 30.2 24.9 19.4 28.1 27.7
45 to 54 years..................... 26.4 14.9 15.4 17.2 21.3
55 to 64 years..................... 14.7 10.1 6.5 6.1 9.7
65 years and over.................. 6.8 8.2 2.8 1.9 2.5
Men, 16 years and over......... 66.2 48.8 42.2 70.5 52.4
16 to 19 years..................... .6 4.6 3.2 3.8 2.6
20 to 24 years..................... 1.9 5.9 9.6 9.2 5.0
25 to 34 years..................... 10.9 10.0 12.2 21.8 12.7
35 to 44 years..................... 20.7 11.6 7.0 20.1 14.6
45 to 54 years..................... 17.0 7.6 6.3 9.4 10.9
55 to 64 years..................... 9.9 5.0 2.2 4.6 5.2
65 years and over.................. 5.2 4.2 1.6 1.6 1.3
Women, 16 years and over....... 33.8 51.2 57.8 29.5 47.6
16 to 19 years..................... .4 4.2 2.5 1.0 2.6
20 to 24 years..................... 1.1 4.0 11.3 2.0 4.7
25 to 34 years..................... 7.0 13.1 17.1 8.8 11.1
35 to 44 years..................... 9.5 13.4 12.4 8.0 13.0
45 to 54 years..................... 9.4 7.3 9.0 7.8 10.4
55 to 64 years..................... 4.8 5.1 4.2 1.6 4.5
65 years and over.................. 1.6 4.1 1.3 .3 1.2
Race and Hispanic origin
White.............................. 90.6 84.2 74.3 79.2 84.0
Black.............................. 5.8 12.7 21.2 12.6 11.4
Hispanic origin.................... 6.1 11.6 13.6 6.0 10.4
Full- or part-time status
Full-time workers.................. 75.1 49.3 78.5 86.8 82.9
Part-time workers.................. 24.9 50.7 21.5 13.2 17.1
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 1999
(Percent distribution)
Workers with alternative arrangements
Workers with
Characteristic traditional
Independent On-call Temporary help Workers arrangements
contractors workers agency workers provided by
contract firms
School enrollment
Total, 16 to 24 years
(thousands)..................... 328 380 317 124 17,901
Percent........................ 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
Enrolled........................... 39.3 56.4 22.7 35.8 44.0
Not enrolled....................... 60.7 43.6 77.3 64.2 56.0
Less than a high school diploma 10.0 13.2 16.3 10.3 8.9
High school graduates, no
college....................... 27.9 20.2 31.8 13.9 25.8
Less than a bachelor's degree.. 11.4 7.1 26.2 23.9 13.9
College graduates.............. 11.5 3.1 3.0 16.2 7.4
Educational attainment
Total, 25 to 64 years
(thousands)..................... 7,359 1,485 838 631 98,207
Percent........................ 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
Less than a high school diploma.... 7.5 13.4 14.6 6.4 9.2
High school graduates, no college.. 29.7 29.6 30.5 22.7 31.4
Less than a bachelor's degree...... 28.5 29.1 33.7 31.9 28.3
College graduates.................. 34.3 27.9 21.2 38.9 31.1
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 1999
(Percent distribution)
Workers with alternative arrangements
Workers with
Characteristic traditional
Independent On-call Temporary help Workers arrangements
contractors workers agency workers provided by
contract firms
Occupation
Total, 16 years and over
(thousands)..................... 8,247 2,032 1,188 769 119,109
Percent........................ 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
Executive, administrative, and
managerial...................... 20.5 5.3 4.3 12.0 14.6
Professional specialty............. 18.5 24.3 6.8 28.8 15.5
Technicians and related support.... 1.1 4.1 4.1 6.7 3.3
Sales occupations.................. 17.3 5.7 1.8 1.5 12.0
Adminstrative support, including
clerical........................ 3.4 8.2 36.1 3.4 15.0
Services........................... 8.8 23.5 8.1 18.8 13.7
Precision production, craft, and
repair.......................... 18.9 10.1 8.7 16.0 10.5
Operators, fabricators, and
laborers........................ 7.0 16.0 29.2 10.7 13.6
Farming, forestry, and fishing..... 4.4 2.9 .9 2.2 2.0
Industry
Total, 16 years and over
(thousands)..................... 8,247 2,032 1,188 769 119,109
Percent........................ 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
Agriculture........................ 4.9 2.2 .4 .4 2.0
Mining............................. .2 .4 .1 2.7 .4
Construction....................... 19.9 9.6 2.5 9.0 5.1
Manufacturing...................... 4.6 4.5 29.7 18.0 16.5
Transportation and public utilities 5.7 9.5 6.1 14.0 7.4
Wholesale trade.................... 3.5 1.8 4.2 .8 4.0
Retail trade....................... 10.2 14.6 3.9 4.6 17.6
Finance, insurance, and real estate 8.8 2.7 7.0 8.9 6.7
Services........................... 42.1 52.0 38.7 27.1 35.2
Public administration.............. .2 2.6 (1) 10.7 5.1
Not reported or ascertained........ - .1 6.3 3.8 -
1 Less than 0.05 percent.
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. For temporary help agency workers
and workers provided by contract firms, the industry classification is that of the place to which they were
assigned. Dash represents zero.
Table 9. Employed contingent and noncontingent workers and those with alternative and traditional work
arrangements by health insurance coverage and eligibility for employer-provided pension plans, February 1999
Percent with health insurance Percent eligible for
coverage employer-provided pension
plan(2)
Characteristic Total employed
Included in
Total Provided by Total employer-pro-
employer(1) vided pension
plan
Contingent workers:
Estimate 1....................... 2,444 60.2 12.4 11.9 5.4
Estimate 2....................... 3,038 57.7 11.0 11.6 5.5
Estimate 3....................... 5,641 64.1 20.6 21.4 13.8
Noncontingent workers.............. 125,853 82.3 54.6 51.3 45.8
With alternative arrangements:
Independent contractors.......... 8,247 73.3 (3) 2.8 1.9
On call workers.................. 2,032 67.3 21.1 29.0 22.5
Temporary help agency workers.... 1,188 41.0 8.5 11.8 5.8
Workers provided by contract
firms........................... 769 79.9 56.1 53.9 40.2
With traditional arrangements...... 119,109 82.8 57.9 54.1 48.3
1 Excludes the self-employed (incorporated and unincorporated) and independent contractors.
2 Excludes the self-employed (incorporated and unincorporated); includes independent contractors who were
self-employed.
3 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.
Table 10. Employed contingent workers by their preference for contingent or noncontingent work arrangements,
February 1999
(Percent distribution)
Contingent workers
Preference
Estimate 1 Estimate 2 Estimate 3
Total, 16 years and over
(thousands)..................... 2,444 3,038 5,641
Percent........................ 100.0 100.0 100.0
Prefer noncontingent employment.... 54.0 53.4 53.1
Prefer contingent employment....... 39.2 39.8 38.9
It depends......................... 5.1 4.5 5.3
Not available...................... 1.7 2.3 2.7
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 1999
(Percent distribution)
Preference Independent contractors On-call workers Temporary help agency
workers
Total, 16 years and over
(thousands)..................... 8,247 2,032 1,188
Percent........................ 100.0 100.0 100.0
Prefer traditional arrangement..... 8.5 46.7 57.0
Prefer indirect or alternative
arrangement..................... 83.8 44.7 33.1
It depends......................... 5.2 4.8 5.3
Not available...................... 2.5 3.8 4.6
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 1999
Percent distribution
Total
Arrangement (thousands) Contingent workers
Noncontingent
workers
Estimate 1 Estimate 2 Estimate 3
With alternative arrangements:
Independent contractors.......... 8,247 (1) 2.9 2.9 97.1
On-call workers.................. 2,032 12.6 13.2 28.0 72.0
Temporary help agency workers.... 1,188 24.2 36.1 55.9 44.1
Workers provided by contract
firms........................... 769 6.0 12.7 20.2 79.8
With traditional arrangements...... 119,109 1.4 1.5 3.2 96.8
1 Not applicable. Excludes independent contractors and the self-employed (incorporated and unincorporated).
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.
Table 13. Median usual weekly earnings of full- and part-time contingent and noncontingent wage and salary workers and
those with alternative and traditional work arrangements by sex, age, race, and Hispanic origin, February 1999
Contingent workers Workers with alternative arrangements
Workers with
Characteristic Noncontinge- Independ- Temporary Workers traditional
Estimate Estimate Estimate nt workers ent On-call help provided arrangements
1 2 3 contract- workers agency by
ors workers contract
firms
Full-time workers
Total, 16 years and
over................ $360 $374 $415 $542 $640 $472 $342 $756 $540
Men.................... 413 434 494 614 689 507 367 770 613
Women.................. 306 314 340 476 441 348 331 690 474
White.................. 378 384 420 564 662 478 338 734 562
Black.................. 265 297 350 447 414 393 354 719 445
Hispanic origin........ 278 286 313 397 504 308 296 (1) 396
Part-time workers
Total, 16 years and
over................ 111 112 114 160 209 119 187 $171 157
Men.................... 116 117 119 150 319 133 192 (1) 146
Women.................. 108 109 112 166 169 114 185 (1) 163
White.................. 111 111 113 161 220 119 183 $197 158
Black.................. 115 119 122 150 142 130 (1) (1) 146
Hispanic origin........ 116 117 116 159 240 102 (1) (1) 156
1 Data not shown where base is less than 75,000.
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. Earnings data
for contingent and noncontingent workers exclude the incorporated self-employed and independent contractors. Data for
independent contractors include the incorporated and unincorporated self-employed; these groups, however, are excluded
from the data for workers with other arrangements.
Internet address: http://stats.bls.gov/newsrels.htm
Technical information: (202) 691-6378 USDL 99-362
For release: 10:00 A.M. EST
Media contact: 691-5902 Tuesday, December 21, 1999