For release 10:00 a.m. (EDT) Thursday, June 7, 2018 USDL-18-0942 

Technical information: (202) 691-6378 • cpsinfo@bls.gov • www.bls.gov/cps 

Media contact: (202) 691-5902 • PressOffice@bls.gov 

CONTINGENT AND ALTERNATIVE EMPLOYMENT ARRANGEMENTS — MAY 2017

In May 2017, 3.8 percent of workers—5.9 million persons—held contingent jobs, the U.S. 

Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. These contingent workers are persons who do not 

expect their jobs to last or who report that their jobs are temporary. Using three different 

measures, contingent workers accounted for 1.3 percent to 3.8 percent of total employment in 

May 2017. (See tables A and 1.) In February 2005, the last time the survey was conducted, all 

three measures were higher, ranging from 1.8 percent to 4.1 percent of employment. 

In addition to contingent workers, the survey also identified workers who have various 

alternative work arrangements. In May 2017, there were 10.6 million independent contractors 

(6.9 percent of total employment), 2.6 million on-call workers (1.7 percent of total employment), 

1.4 million temporary help agency workers (0.9 percent of total employment), and 933,000 

workers provided by contract firms (0.6 percent of total employment). (See tables A and 5.) 

Contingent work and alternative employment arrangements are measured separately. Some 

workers are both contingent and working in an alternative arrangement, but this is not 

automatically the case. The measures of contingent work and alternative employment 

arrangements apply only to a person's sole or main job. For individuals with more than one job, 

this is the job in which they usually work the most hours. 

Note on New Questions in 2017 Contingent Worker Supplement 

Four new questions were added to the May 2017 Contingent Worker Supplement. These 

questions were designed to identify individuals who found short tasks or jobs through a mobile 

app or website and were paid through the same app or website. BLS continues to evaluate the 

data from these new questions; the data do not appear in this news release. When available, 

additional information will be at www.bls.gov/cps/electronically-mediated-employment.htm. 

Findings from this research will be published in a Monthly Labor Review article by September 

30, 2018. 
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Table A. Contingent workers and workers in alternative arrangements as a percent of total 

employment, May 2017

Contingent workers

Percent of 

total 

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. Temporary help and contract workers are included in this estimate 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 are assigned.

1.3

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. Temporary help and contract workers are included in this estimate based on the 

expected duration and tenure with the client to whom they are assigned, instead of their tenure with 

the temporary help or contract firm.

1.6

Estimate 3

Workers who do not expect their jobs to last. Wage and salary workers are included even if they 

already have 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.

3.8

Alternative employment arrangements

Independent contractors

Workers who are identified as independent contractors, independent consultants, or freelance 

workers, regardless of whether they are self-employed or wage and salary workers.

6.9

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. 

1.7

Temporary help agency workers

Workers who are paid by a temporary help agency, whether or not their job is temporary. 0.9

Workers provided by contract firms

Workers who are employed by a company that provides them or their services to others under 

contract, are usually assigned to only one customer, and usually work at the customer’s worksite. 

0.6

See the Technical Note for the concepts and key questions used to identify these workers.
-3- 

This information was obtained from the Current Population Survey (CPS), a monthly sample 

survey of about 60,000 households that provides data on employment and unemployment in the 

United States. Data on contingent and alternative employment arrangements were collected 

periodically in supplements to the CPS from February 1995 to February 2005. The May 2017 

supplement was sponsored by the U.S. Department of Labor's Chief Evaluation Office. Table A 

presents a summary of the three contingent worker estimates and four alternative employment

arrangements. The concepts and definitions used in the supplement are included in the Technical 

Note in this news release. Also see www.bls.gov/cps/contingent-and-alternative-arrangementsfaqs.htm for answers to frequently asked questions. 

Highlights from the May 2017 data:

• Under the broadest measure of contingency, there were 5.9 million contingent workers; 

these workers who did not expect their jobs to last accounted for 3.8 percent of total 

employment. (See table 1.) 

• Contingent workers were more than twice as likely as noncontingent workers to be under 

age 25. They were also more than twice as likely as noncontingent workers to work part 

time. (See table 2.) 

• Young contingent workers (16- to 24-year-olds) were much more likely than their 

noncontingent counterparts to be enrolled in school (62 percent and 36 percent, 

respectively). (See table 3.) 

• Contingent workers were more likely to work in professional and related occupations and 

in construction and extraction occupations than noncontingent workers. (See table 4.)

• More than half of contingent workers (55 percent) would have preferred a permanent job. 

(See table 10.) 

• In terms of alternative employment arrangements, 6.9 percent of all workers were 

independent contractors, 1.7 percent were on-call workers, 0.9 percent were temporary 

help agency workers, and 0.6 percent were workers provided by contract firms. (See table 

A.) 

• The demographic characteristics of workers in alternative employment arrangements 

varied between the four arrangements. Compared to workers in traditional arrangements, 

independent contractors were more likely to be older, temporary help agency workers 

were more likely to be Black or Hispanic or Latino, and workers provided by contract

companies were more likely to be men. (See table 6.) 

• While 79 percent of independent contractors preferred their arrangement over a 

traditional job, only 44 percent of on-call workers and 39 percent of temporary help 

agency workers preferred their work arrangement. (See table 11.) 
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• The proportion of workers employed in alternative arrangements who also were classified 

as contingent workers ranged from 3 percent of independent contractors to 42 percent of 

temporary help agency workers. (See table 12.) 

Contingent Work 

In May 2017, the three estimates of contingent workers ranged from 1.3 percent to 3.8 percent of 

employment. (See table A and the Technical Note for an explanation of the concepts.) In 

February 2005, the last time the survey was conducted, all three measures were higher, ranging 

from 1.8 percent to 4.1 percent of employment. In February 1995, the first year the survey was 

conducted, the estimates ranged from 2.2 percent to 4.9 percent. The characteristics of workers in 

contingent jobs in May 2017 were generally similar to those in prior surveys. 

The analysis in this news release focuses on the third and largest estimate of contingent 

workers—all those who do not expect their current job to last.

Demographic Characteristics of Contingent Workers

Using the broadest estimate of contingency, 5.9 million workers were classified as contingent in 

May 2017. Contingent workers were more than twice as likely as noncontingent workers to be 

under 25 years old (28 percent versus 12 percent). Of these young workers, 3 in 5 contingent 

workers were enrolled in school, compared with fewer than 2 in 5 youth with noncontingent 

jobs. Contingent workers ages 25 to 64 were found at all levels of educational attainment. 

Contingent workers were about twice as likely as noncontingent workers to have less than a high 

school diploma (14 percent, compared with 7 percent) and slightly more likely to hold at least a 

bachelor’s degree (44 percent, compared with 41 percent). (See tables 1, 2, and 3.) 

In May 2017, 47 percent of both contingent and noncontingent workers were women. In past 

surveys, contingent workers were slightly more likely to be women than were noncontingent 

workers. In May 2017, contingent workers remained slightly less likely than noncontingent 

workers to be White (76 percent, compared with 79 percent) and much more likely to be 

Hispanic or Latino (22 percent, compared with 16 percent). 

Contingent workers are more likely to work part time than are noncontingent workers. In May 

2017, about 2 in 5 contingent workers worked less than 35 hours per week, compared with fewer

than 1 in 5 noncontingent workers. However, the vast majority of part-time workers were not 

employed in contingent arrangements. 

Occupation and Industry of Contingent Workers

As in previous surveys, contingent workers were distributed throughout the major occupational 

groups. In May 2017, nearly one-third of contingent workers were employed in professional and 

related occupations, compared with one-fourth of noncontingent workers. Contingent workers 

were also more likely than their noncontingent counterparts to work in construction and 

extraction occupations (11 percent and 5 percent, respectively). Contingent workers were less 
-5- 

likely than noncontingent workers to be employed in management, business, and financial 

operations occupations (8 percent and 17 percent, respectively). (See table 4.)

By industry, about one-third of contingent workers were employed in the education and health 

services industry, compared with roughly one-fourth of noncontingent workers. Contingent 

workers also were more likely than noncontingent workers to be employed in the agriculture and 

construction industries. Contingent workers were less likely to work in retail trade and 

manufacturing than were noncontingent workers. 

Job Preferences of Contingent Workers

 

Just over half of contingent workers would have preferred a permanent job in May 2017, while 

one-third preferred their contingent employment arrangement. (The remainder expressed no clear 

preference.) The share of contingent workers who would have preferred a permanent job was 

about the same as in past surveys. (See table 10.) 

Compensation of Contingent Workers

 

Contingent workers earned less than their noncontingent counterparts in May 2017. Among fulltime workers, median weekly earnings for contingent workers ($685) were 77 percent of those of 

noncontingent workers ($886). The disparity in earnings likely reflects the many differences in 

the demographic characteristics of contingent and noncontingent workers and the jobs they hold. 

(See table 13.) 

Contingent wage and salary workers were half as likely to be covered by employer-provided 

health insurance as noncontingent workers. One-fourth of contingent workers had employerprovided health insurance in May 2017, compared with half of noncontingent workers. Although 

most contingent workers did not receive health insurance from their jobs, a substantial share—

nearly 3 in 4—had health insurance from some source, including coverage from another family 

member's policy, through a government program, or by purchasing it on their own. Overall, 

contingent workers were less likely than noncontingent workers to have health insurance 

coverage from any source (73 percent and 84 percent, respectively). The gap in health insurance 

coverage between contingent and noncontingent workers is smaller than in 2005. (See table 9.) 

Among wage and salary workers, contingent workers were about half as likely as noncontingent 

workers to be eligible for employer-provided pension or retirement plans in May 2017—23 

percent of contingent workers compared with 48 percent of noncontingent workers. Overall, the 

proportion of contingent workers who actually participated in employer-provided plans (18 

percent) also was much lower than that of noncontingent workers (43 percent).

Alternative Employment Arrangements

 

The May 2017 survey 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. 
-6- 

Compared with February 2005 (the last time the survey was conducted), the proportion of the 

employed who were independent contractors was lower in May 2017, while the proportions 

employed in the other three alternative arrangements were little different. Workers in the four 

groups continued to differ significantly from each other as well as from workers in traditional 

arrangements. 

Independent Contractors

 

Independent contractors (including independent consultants and freelance workers) remained the 

largest of the four alternative work arrangements. In May 2017, there were 10.6 million 

independent contractors, representing 6.9 percent of total employment. This estimate is smaller 

than the 7.4 percent of workers in February 2005 who were independent contractors. (See tables 

A and 5.) 

Independent contractors are generally older than workers in other alternative and traditional 

arrangements. In May 2017, more than 1 in 3 independent contractors were age 55 or older, 

compared with fewer than 1 in 4 workers in traditional arrangements. This reflects the fact that 

the likelihood of employed persons being independent contractors increases with age. (See tables 

5 and 6.) 

As in past surveys, men were more likely to be independent contractors than were women; about 

two-thirds of independent contractors were men in May 2017. Independent contractors also 

remained more likely to be White than workers in other alternative and traditional arrangements. 

Independent contractors were more likely than those in traditional arrangements to be in 

management, business, and financial operations occupations; sales and related occupations; and 

construction and extraction occupations. In terms of industry, independent contractors were more 

likely than traditional workers to be employed in construction and in professional and business 

services. (See table 8.)

Independent contractors overwhelmingly prefer their work arrangement (79 percent) to 

traditional jobs. Fewer than 1 in 10 independent contractors would prefer a traditional work 

arrangement. (See table 11.) 

Only 3 percent of independent contractors were also contingent workers in May 2017—the same 

percentage as workers in traditional arrangements. (See table 12.) 

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 May 2017, there were 2.6 million oncall workers, accounting for 1.7 percent of total employment. The demographic characteristics of 

on-call workers were generally similar to those in traditional arrangements except that on-call 

workers were somewhat more likely to be age 65 or older. (See tables 5 and 6.)
-7- 

About 45 percent of on-call workers worked part time, a much higher proportion than either 

traditional workers or workers in other alternative arrangements. 

On-call workers were more likely than those in traditional arrangements to work in professional 

and related occupations, service occupations, construction and extraction occupations, and 

transportation and material moving occupations. By industry, on-call workers were more likely 

to work in education and health services and in construction. (See table 8.)

In May 2017, 43 percent of on-call workers would have preferred to work in a traditional 

arrangement, about the same percentage as preferred their alternative arrangement. Roughly 1 in 

5 on-call workers was also a contingent worker. (See tables 11 and 12.)

Temporary Help Agency Workers

 

In May 2017, 1.4 million workers were paid by a temporary help agency, about 0.9 percent of 

total employment. As in earlier surveys, they were much more likely than workers in traditional 

arrangements to be Black or Hispanic or Latino. Temporary help agency workers ages 25 to 64 

were less likely than traditional workers or workers in other arrangements to have attended

college—about half of temporary help agency workers had completed at least one year of 

college, compared with roughly two-thirds of those in other alternative or traditional 

arrangements. About 1 in 4 temporary help agency workers had a part-time schedule—a slightly 

higher proportion than for traditional workers. (See tables 5, 6, and 7.) 

Temporary help agency workers were heavily concentrated in the production, transportation, and 

material moving occupations and in manufacturing industries. In May 2017, 46 percent of 

temporary help agency workers would have preferred a traditional job, less than the 56 percent in 

February 2005. In May 2017, 42 percent of temporary help agency workers were also contingent 

workers, a smaller share than in past surveys. (See tables 8, 11, and 12.) 

Workers Provided by Contract Firms

 

The smallest of the four alternative arrangements was contract company employment, with 

933,000 workers or 0.6 percent of total employment in May 2017. These individuals work for 

companies that provide workers or their services to other organizations under contract; they

usually are assigned to one client at a time and work at the client’s place of business. Two-thirds 

of contract company workers were men, compared with about half of traditional workers. 

Workers provided by contract firms were more likely to be Asian than were traditional workers 

or workers in other arrangements. (See tables 5 and 6.)

In May 2017, more than one-third of contract company workers were in professional and related 

occupations and one-fourth were in service occupations. Computer professionals and security 

guards are common occupations for workers provided by contract firms. By industry, contract 

company workers were much more likely to be employed in public administration than those in 

other alternative or traditional arrangements. Fifteen percent of contract company workers were 

also contingent workers. (See tables 8 and 12.)
-8- 

Compensation of Workers in Alternative Employment 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 

May 2017, median weekly earnings were highest for contract company workers ($1,077). 

Earnings for independent contractors ($851) were roughly similar to those for workers in 

traditional arrangements ($884), while earnings for on-call workers ($797) and temporary help 

agency workers ($521) were lower. (See table 13.)

Differences in earnings for workers in the four alternative arrangements reflect, in part, 

variations in the occupational distributions and the demographic characteristics of the workers. 

For example, contract company workers are concentrated in professional and related 

occupations, which tend to be more highly paid. On the other hand, temporary help agency 

workers are less likely to have attended college and are concentrated in lower-paying production, 

transportation, and material moving occupations. 

Workers in alternative arrangements remained less likely than workers in traditional 

arrangements to have employer-provided health insurance. In May 2017, 41 percent of contract 

company workers had employer-provided health insurance, compared with 28 percent of on-call 

workers and 13 percent of temporary help agency workers. In contrast, 53 percent of workers in 

traditional arrangements received health insurance benefits through their employers. (Estimates 

of employer-provided health insurance were not tabulated for independent contractors.) (See 

table 9.) 

Although most workers in alternative arrangements did not receive health insurance through their 

jobs, a large share had health insurance from some source, including coverage from another 

family member's policy, through a government program, or by purchasing it on their own. 

Compared with workers in traditional arrangements (84 percent) and those employed by contract 

companies (85 percent), workers in the other alternative employment arrangements were less 

likely to be covered by health insurance from any source. In particular, temporary help agency 

workers were the least likely to have health insurance from any source (67 percent). The 

likelihood of having health insurance was higher for workers in all categories in May 2017 than 

in February 2005, with the largest increase among temporary help agency workers. 

Eligibility for employer-provided pension or retirement plans varies across employment 

arrangements. In May 2017, temporary help agency workers (13 percent) and on-call workers 

(35 percent) were less likely to be eligible for employer-provided plans than were contract 

company workers (48 percent) or those in traditional arrangements (51 percent). Overall, the 

proportions of workers in alternative arrangements who actually participated in employerprovided plans were lower than for those in traditional arrangements. (These data were not 

collected for independent contractors.)
Technical Note

The data presented in this news release were collected 

through a supplement to the May 2017 Current Population 

Survey (CPS), a monthly survey of about 60,000 eligible

households that provides data on employment and 

unemployment for the nation. The CPS is conducted by the 

U.S. Census Bureau for the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics 

(BLS). 

The May 2017 supplement obtained information from 

workers on whether they held contingent jobs—jobs that are 

expected to last only a limited period of time—and whether 

they had alternative employment arrangements, such as 

working as independent contractors, as on-call workers, 

through temporary help agencies, or through contract firms. 

Contingent work and alternative employment arrangements 

are measured separately. A person in an alternative 

employment arrangement may or may not be a contingent 

worker. Likewise, a contingent worker may or may not be in 

an alternative employment arrangement.

Supplement questions were asked of all employed 

people except unpaid family workers. For people holding 

more than one job, the questions referred to the 

characteristics of their main job—the job in which they 

worked the most hours. The collection of these data was 

sponsored by the U.S. Department of Labor's Chief 

Evaluation Office. Additional information, including articles

and archived news releases, is available online at

www.bls.gov/cps/lfcharacteristics.htm#contingent. Answers 

to frequently asked questions are available online at 

www.bls.gov/cps/contingent-and-alternative-arrangementsfaqs.htm.

Four new questions were added to the May 2017 

supplement. These questions were designed to identify 

individuals who found short tasks or jobs through a mobile

app or website and were paid through the same app or 

website. Data from these new questions are not included in 

this news release. For information about these questions, see

www.bls.gov/cps/electronically-mediated-employment.htm. 

Information in this release will be made available to 

sensory impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: 

(202) 691-5200; Federal Relay Service: (800) 877-8339.

Concepts and definitions

Information about general employment and earnings 

concepts in the CPS is available on the BLS website at 

www.bls.gov/opub/hom/cps/concepts.htm.

Defining and estimating the contingent workforce. 

Contingent workers are those who do not have an explicit 

or implicit contract for continuing employment. Several 

questions are asked in the supplement to determine whether 

a worker's job is contingent. These include whether the job 

is temporary or not expected to continue, how long the 

worker expects to be able to hold the job, and how long the 

worker has held the job.

The key factor used to determine if workers fit the 

conceptual definition of contingent is whether their job is 

temporary or not expected to continue. The first questions of 

the supplement are:

1. Some people are in temporary jobs that last 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?

Workers who answered either "yes" to the first question 

or "no" to the second are then asked a series of questions to 

distinguish workers who are in temporary jobs from those 

who, for personal reasons, are temporarily holding jobs that 

offer the opportunity of ongoing employment. A job is 

defined as being short term or temporary if the person 

holding it is 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 dictate that the job is short term.

For example, a person hired for 6 months to replace a 

teacher on paternity leave and a person hired to work in a 

company's shipping department for the holiday season would 

both be considered contingent workers. In contrast, students 

holding jobs at fast-food restaurants while in school might 

view their 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, and 

thus, the students are not contingent workers. 

Workers also are asked how long they expect to stay in 

their current job and how long they have been with their 

current employer. Workers are asked how long they expect 

to remain in their current job because being able to hold a job 

for a year or more could demonstrate at least an implicit 

contract for ongoing employment. In other words, the 

employer's need for the worker's services is not likely to end 

tomorrow. Similarly, the information on how long a worker 

has been with their employer shows whether a job has been 

ongoing. Having remained with an employer for more than a 

year may demonstrate 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, 

as follows:

Estimate 1 is the narrowest definition of contingent 

work. Under Estimate 1, contingent workers are wage and 

salary workers who expect to work in their current job for 1 

year or less and who have worked for their current employer 

for 1 year or less. All self-employed workers—both 

incorporated and unincorporated—and independent 

contractors are excluded from the count of contingent 

workers under Estimate 1. Although they may face financial 

risks, people who work for themselves, by definition, have 

ongoing employment arrangements. Individuals who work 

for temporary help agencies or contracting companies are 

considered contingent under Estimate 1 if they expect their 

employment arrangement with the temporary help or 

contracting company to last for 1 year or less and they have 

worked for that company for 1 year or less. 

Estimate 2 expands the definition of contingent work 

by including the self-employed—both the incorporated and 

the unincorporated—and independent contractors who 

expect to be, and have 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 are classified as contingent under Estimate 

2 if they have worked and expect to work for the customers 

to whom they are 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 agency for 

more than 1 year and expects to be able to continue with that 

agency indefinitely is contingent under Estimate 2, but not 

under Estimate 1. In contrast, a "temp" who has been 

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 is the broadest definition of contingent 

work—people who do not expect their jobs to last—and the 

focus of the analysis in this news release. Estimate 3 expands 

the definition of contingent work further by removing the 1-

year requirement on both expected duration of the job and 

current tenure for wage and salary workers. The estimate 

includes all 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 has held a job for 5 years 

could be considered contingent if he or she now views the 

job as temporary. The 1-year requirement on expected and 

current tenure is retained for the self-employed and 

independent contractors.

Defining alternative employment arrangements. 

Alternative employment arrangements are determined by 

the workers' relationship to their employer. To provide 

estimates of the number of workers in alternative 

employment arrangements, the supplement includes 

questions about whether individuals are paid by a temporary 

help agency or contract company, or whether they are on-call 

workers or independent contractors. (The survey also 

includes questions about day laborers. Estimates for day 

laborers are not presented as a separate category of 

alternative arrangements in this news release because the 

group is very small. They are included in estimates of total 

employment.) 

Contingent work, which is determined by expectations 

about the duration of a person's job, is a separate concept 

from alternative employment arrangements. Some workers 

are both contingent and working in an alternative 

arrangement, but this is not automatically the case.

Definitions of the four main alternative employment 

arrangements follow, as well as the key questions used to 

identify workers in each category: 

Independent contractors are those who are identified 

as independent contractors, consultants, or freelance workers 

in the supplement, regardless of whether they are identified 

as wage and salary workers or self-employed in the basic 

CPS labor force status questions. To distinguish independent 

contractors from business operators such as a restaurant 

owner, the supplement includes a question for workers who 

identified as self-employed (incorporated and 

unincorporated) in the basic CPS that asks, "Are you selfemployed as an independent contractor, independent 

consultant, freelance worker, or something else (such as a 

shop or restaurant owner)?" Those identified as wage and 

salary workers in the basic CPS are 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." Nearly 9 in 10 independent contractors are selfemployed. Conversely, 3 in every 5 self-employed workers 

are independent contractors. 

On-call workers are called into work only when they 

are needed. This category includes workers who answer 

"yes" 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?" Individuals with regularly scheduled 

work, which might include periods of being "on call" to 

perform work at unusual hours, such as medical residents, 

are not included in this category.

Temporary help agency workers are those who are 

paid by a temporary help agency. This category includes 

workers who say their job is temporary and answer "yes" to 

the question, "Are you paid by a temporary help agency?" 

Also included are workers who say their job is not temporary 

and answer affirmatively to the question, "Even though you 
told me your job is not temporary, are you paid by a 

temporary help agency?" Temporary help agency workers 

include both the permanent staff of the agencies and those 

who are placed with other companies in temporary 

assignments.

Workers provided by contract firms are those who 

work for a contract company, usually work for only one 

customer, and usually work at the customer's worksite. This 

refers to individuals who are employed by firms who 

contract out their workers or their workers' services, rather 

than all workers employed by firms that provide services

under contract, such as advertising agencies and law firms. 

This category includes workers who answer "yes" 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 responded "no" to the question, "Are you usually 

assigned to more than one customer?" Finally, these workers 

responded "yes" to the question, "Do you usually work at the 

customer's worksite?"

Comparability of the estimates

The concepts of contingent work and alternative 

employment arrangements used in the May 2017 survey are 

the same as those collected in the past. The questions used to 

identify these workers were essentially unchanged from past 

surveys. However, there are a few issues that could affect the 

comparability of these estimates with those from prior years. 

The prime concern is that the 2017 supplement was collected 

in May and earlier surveys were conducted in February of 

1995, 1997, 1999, 2001, and 2005. The seasonality of 

contingent jobs and alternative employment arrangements is

not known. However, any seasonality may affect the size and 

composition of the contingent workforce and people working

in alternative employment arrangements. For example, a 

seasonal job that is only available at a certain time each year 

counts as a contingent job. The number and types of these 

kinds of jobs available in February and May might be 

different.

Two tables in this news release present slightly 

different displays of data than prior releases. Table 13 of this 

news release contains usual weekly earnings estimates for 

workers in noncontingent and traditional arrangements, 

which were omitted from the February 2001 and 2005 news 

releases. Earnings for noncontingent and traditional workers 

were not collected in February 2001 and 2005. Earnings for 

such workers had been published in earlier news releases. 

The estimates of workers eligible for employerprovided pension or retirement plans in table 9 of this news 

release are not strictly comparable with those of earlier years 

because the May 2017 estimates exclude all self-employed 

workers and independent contractors. In previous years, 

some of these workers were included in the estimates.

Other data presented in this news release are not strictly 

comparable with those for earlier years due to several other 

methodological issues. Comparability of estimates over time 

is affected by the introduction of population controls and 

changes in the classification of industries and occupations. 

Additional information about comparability of data over 

time is available at www.bls.gov/cps/documentation.htm.

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 component of this difference that occurs 

because samples differ by chance is known as sampling 

error, and its 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. 

Nonsampling 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.

Information about the reliability of data from the CPS 

and guidance on estimating standard errors is available at 

www.bls.gov/cps/documentation.htm#reliability.
Table 1. Employed contingent and noncontingent workers by selected characteristics, May 2017

(In thousands)

Characteristic Total employed

Contingent workers

Estimate 1 Estimate 2 Estimate 3

Noncontingent

workers

AGE AND SEX

Total, 16 years and over 153,331 1,958 2,511 5,858 147,473

16 to 19 years 4,842 316 330 501 4,340

20 to 24 years 14,212 567 647 1,110 13,102

25 to 34 years 33,991 472 616 1,419 32,572

35 to 44 years 32,065 271 392 992 31,073

45 to 54 years 32,745 175 285 817 31,928

55 to 64 years 26,236 116 179 680 25,556

65 years and over 9,240 41 62 338 8,902

Men, 16 years and over 81,545 1,062 1,349 3,085 78,461

16 to 19 years 2,365 166 180 271 2,093

20 to 24 years 7,412 310 340 560 6,852

25 to 34 years 18,169 274 376 853 17,316

35 to 44 years 17,585 144 196 503 17,082

45 to 54 years 17,099 94 139 408 16,691

55 to 64 years 13,840 65 94 337 13,503

65 years and over 5,076 10 23 152 4,924

Women, 16 years and over 71,785 896 1,162 2,773 69,012

16 to 19 years 2,477 150 150 230 2,247

20 to 24 years 6,800 257 306 550 6,250

25 to 34 years 15,823 198 240 566 15,257

35 to 44 years 14,480 127 196 489 13,991

45 to 54 years 15,646 81 146 408 15,238

55 to 64 years 12,396 51 85 343 12,053

65 years and over 4,164 31 39 186 3,977

RACE AND HISPANIC OR LATINO ETHNICITY

White 120,638 1,451 1,885 4,428 116,211

Black or African American 18,588 225 295 742 17,846

Asian 9,110 182 224 445 8,665

Hispanic or Latino ethnicity 25,525 435 538 1,299 24,225

FULL- OR PART-TIME STATUS

Full-time workers 125,240 1,051 1,349 3,466 121,774

Part-time workers 28,091 907 1,162 2,391 25,699

NOTE: Noncontingent workers are those who do not fall into any estimate of "contingent" workers. Estimates for the above race groups (White, Black or

African American, and Asian) do not sum to totals because data are not presented for all races. Persons whose ethnicity is identified as Hispanic or

Latino may be of any race. Detail for other characteristics may not sum to totals due to rounding.
Table 2. Distribution of employed contingent and noncontingent workers by selected characteristics, May 2017

(Percent distribution)

Characteristic

Contingent workers

Estimate 1 Estimate 2 Estimate 3

Noncontingent

workers

AGE AND SEX

Total, 16 years and over 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0

16 to 19 years 16.2 13.1 8.6 2.9

20 to 24 years 29.0 25.8 18.9 8.9

25 to 34 years 24.1 24.5 24.2 22.1

35 to 44 years 13.8 15.6 16.9 21.1

45 to 54 years 8.9 11.4 13.9 21.7

55 to 64 years 5.9 7.1 11.6 17.3

65 years and over 2.1 2.5 5.8 6.0

Men, 16 years and over 54.2 53.7 52.7 53.2

16 to 19 years 8.5 7.2 4.6 1.4

20 to 24 years 15.8 13.6 9.6 4.6

25 to 34 years 14.0 15.0 14.6 11.7

35 to 44 years 7.3 7.8 8.6 11.6

45 to 54 years 4.8 5.6 7.0 11.3

55 to 64 years 3.3 3.7 5.7 9.2

65 years and over 0.5 0.9 2.6 3.3

Women, 16 years and over 45.8 46.3 47.3 46.8

16 to 19 years 7.7 6.0 3.9 1.5

20 to 24 years 13.1 12.2 9.4 4.2

25 to 34 years 10.1 9.6 9.7 10.3

35 to 44 years 6.5 7.8 8.3 9.5

45 to 54 years 4.2 5.8 7.0 10.3

55 to 64 years 2.6 3.4 5.9 8.2

65 years and over 1.6 1.5 3.2 2.7

RACE AND HISPANIC OR LATINO ETHNICITY

White 74.1 75.1 75.6 78.8

Black or African American 11.5 11.8 12.7 12.1

Asian 9.3 8.9 7.6 5.9

Hispanic or Latino ethnicity 22.2 21.4 22.2 16.4

FULL- OR PART-TIME STATUS

Full-time workers 53.7 53.7 59.2 82.6

Part-time workers 46.3 46.3 40.8 17.4

NOTE: Noncontingent workers are those who do not fall into any estimate of "contingent" workers. Estimates for the above race groups (White, Black or

African American, and Asian) do not sum to totals because data are not presented for all races. Persons whose ethnicity is identified as Hispanic or

Latino may be of any race. 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, May 2017

(Percent distribution)

Characteristic

Contingent workers

Estimate 1 Estimate 2 Estimate 3

Noncontingent

workers

SCHOOL ENROLLMENT

Total, 16 to 24 years (thousands) 884 977 1,611 17,442

Percent 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0

Enrolled in school 60.1 59.2 61.6 35.7

Not enrolled in school 39.9 40.8 38.4 64.3

Less than a high school diploma 3.3 3.8 4.6 5.3

High school graduates, no college1 12.5 13.5 13.9 27.7

Some college or associate degree 15.3 14.9 11.5 19.5

Bachelor's degree and higher2 8.9 8.6 8.3 11.7

EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT

Total, 25 to 64 years (thousands) 1,034 1,472 3,908 121,129

Percent 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0

Less than a high school diploma 13.0 13.1 13.5 7.0

High school graduates, no college1 23.8 21.2 22.1 25.2

Some college or associate degree 23.4 24.5 20.9 27.2

Bachelor's degree and higher2 39.8 41.2 43.5 40.6

1 Includes persons with a high school diploma or equivalent.

2 Includes persons with bachelor's, master's, professional, and doctoral degrees.

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, May 2017

(Percent distribution)

Characteristic

Contingent workers

Estimate 1 Estimate 2 Estimate 3

Noncontingent

workers

OCCUPATION

Total, 16 years and over (thousands) 1,958 2,511 5,858 147,473

Percent 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0

Management, professional, and related occupations 31.0 33.3 39.1 40.7

Management, business, and financial operations occupations 5.6 7.4 7.9 17.2

Professional and related occupations 25.4 25.9 31.2 23.5

Service occupations 18.2 18.8 17.1 17.2

Sales and office occupations 20.7 18.0 16.2 21.5

Sales and related occupations 5.1 5.2 4.9 10.1

Office and administrative support occupations 15.5 12.8 11.3 11.4

Natural resources, construction, and maintenance occupations 15.1 15.8 15.3 9.0

Farming, fishing, and forestry occupations 3.5 2.7 2.7 0.7

Construction and extraction occupations 11.0 11.5 10.6 5.0

Installation, maintenance, and repair occupations 0.6 1.6 2.0 3.2

Production, transportation, and material moving occupations 14.9 14.1 12.2 11.6

Production occupations 4.9 4.6 4.6 5.8

Transportation and material moving occupations 10.0 9.5 7.7 5.8

INDUSTRY

Total, 16 years and over (thousands) 1,958 2,511 5,858 147,473

Percent 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0

Agriculture and related industries 4.5 4.0 3.2 1.6

Mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction 0.4 0.3 0.2 0.5

Construction 9.6 10.9 10.8 6.7

Manufacturing 6.5 5.8 6.3 10.6

Wholesale trade 1.5 1.1 1.0 2.3

Retail trade 8.5 8.1 6.2 10.7

Transportation and utilities 3.8 5.5 4.1 5.1

Information 1.6 1.5 1.6 1.9

Financial activities 1.9 2.3 2.6 7.1

Professional and business services 12.7 16.3 14.9 12.0

Education and health services 29.1 25.3 31.3 22.7

Leisure and hospitality 12.1 10.1 9.3 9.3

Other services 5.2 6.7 5.3 4.9

Public administration 2.7 2.1 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, May 2017

(In thousands)

Characteristic Total

employed

Workers with alternative arrangements

Independent

contractors

On-call

workers

Temporary

help agency

workers

Workers

provided by

contract firms

Workers with

traditional

arrangements

AGE AND SEX

Total, 16 years and over 153,331 10,614 2,579 1,356 933 137,853

16 to 19 years 4,842 43 107 25 14 4,647

20 to 24 years 14,212 330 263 195 53 13,370

25 to 34 years 33,991 1,593 516 303 224 31,361

35 to 44 years 32,065 2,160 565 283 207 28,849

45 to 54 years 32,745 2,562 446 276 206 29,263

55 to 64 years 26,236 2,426 399 170 124 23,110

65 years and over 9,240 1,500 283 105 106 7,253

Men, 16 years and over 81,545 6,820 1,355 709 625 72,035

16 to 19 years 2,365 42 53 20 9 2,235

20 to 24 years 7,412 187 169 100 28 6,931

25 to 34 years 18,169 1,016 271 170 157 16,554

35 to 44 years 17,585 1,430 329 122 144 15,557

45 to 54 years 17,099 1,611 208 166 146 14,971

55 to 64 years 13,840 1,547 209 81 81 11,914

65 years and over 5,076 986 117 50 60 3,873

Women, 16 years and over 71,785 3,794 1,224 647 308 65,818

16 to 19 years 2,477 1 55 5 5 2,412

20 to 24 years 6,800 143 94 95 25 6,439

25 to 34 years 15,823 577 245 133 67 14,807

35 to 44 years 14,480 730 237 161 63 13,292

45 to 54 years 15,646 951 238 110 60 14,292

55 to 64 years 12,396 878 190 88 44 11,196

65 years and over 4,164 514 166 55 45 3,380

RACE AND HISPANIC OR LATINO ETHNICITY

White 120,638 8,975 2,019 797 614 108,237

Black or African American 18,588 880 323 351 132 16,902

Asian 9,110 461 129 104 115 8,297

Hispanic or Latino ethnicity 25,525 1,566 449 345 163 22,973

FULL- OR PART-TIME STATUS

Full-time workers 125,240 7,485 1,428 1,042 785 114,496

Part-time workers 28,091 3,129 1,151 314 148 23,357

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 there are a small number of workers

who were both "on call" and "provided by contract firms." Estimates for the above race groups (White, Black or African American, and Asian) do not

sum to totals because data are not presented for all races. Persons whose ethnicity is identified as Hispanic or Latino may be of any race. Detail for

other characteristics may not sum to totals due to rounding.
Table 6. Distribution of employed workers with alternative and traditional work arrangements by selected characteristics, May 2017

(Percent distribution)

Characteristic

Workers with alternative arrangements

Independent

contractors On-call workers Temporary helpagency workers

Workers

provided by

contract firms

Workers with

traditional

arrangements

AGE AND SEX

Total, 16 years and over 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0

16 to 19 years 0.4 4.2 1.9 1.5 3.4

20 to 24 years 3.1 10.2 14.4 5.6 9.7

25 to 34 years 15.0 20.0 22.3 23.9 22.7

35 to 44 years 20.4 21.9 20.9 22.2 20.9

45 to 54 years 24.1 17.3 20.3 22.1 21.2

55 to 64 years 22.9 15.5 12.5 13.3 16.8

65 years and over 14.1 11.0 7.7 11.3 5.3

Men, 16 years and over 64.3 52.5 52.3 67.0 52.3

16 to 19 years 0.4 2.0 1.5 1.0 1.6

20 to 24 years 1.8 6.5 7.4 3.0 5.0

25 to 34 years 9.6 10.5 12.5 16.8 12.0

35 to 44 years 13.5 12.7 9.0 15.4 11.3

45 to 54 years 15.2 8.1 12.2 15.7 10.9

55 to 64 years 14.6 8.1 6.0 8.6 8.6

65 years and over 9.3 4.5 3.7 6.5 2.8

Women, 16 years and over 35.7 47.5 47.7 33.0 47.7

16 to 19 years 0.0 2.1 0.4 0.5 1.7

20 to 24 years 1.3 3.7 7.0 2.6 4.7

25 to 34 years 5.4 9.5 9.8 7.1 10.7

35 to 44 years 6.9 9.2 11.8 6.8 9.6

45 to 54 years 9.0 9.2 8.1 6.4 10.4

55 to 64 years 8.3 7.4 6.5 4.7 8.1

65 years and over 4.8 6.4 4.1 4.9 2.5

RACE AND HISPANIC OR LATINO ETHNICITY

White 84.6 78.3 58.8 65.8 78.5

Black or African American 8.3 12.5 25.9 14.1 12.3

Asian 4.3 5.0 7.7 12.3 6.0

Hispanic or Latino ethnicity 14.8 17.4 25.4 17.4 16.7

FULL- OR PART-TIME STATUS

Full-time workers 70.5 55.4 76.9 84.1 83.1

Part-time workers 29.5 44.6 23.1 15.9 16.9

NOTE: Workers with traditional arrangements are those who do not fall into any of the "alternative arrangements" categories. Estimates for the above race

groups (White, Black or African American, and Asian) do not sum to totals because data are not presented for all races. Persons whose ethnicity is identified as

Hispanic or Latino may be of any race. 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, May 2017

(Percent distribution)

Characteristic

Workers with alternative arrangements

Independent

contractors On-call workers Temporary helpagency workers

Workers

provided by

contract firms

Workers with

traditional

arrangements

SCHOOL ENROLLMENT

Total, 16 to 24 years (thousands) 373 370 220 67 18,018

Percent 100.0 100.0 100.0 - 100.0

Enrolled in school 22.6 39.8 14.0 - 38.5

Not enrolled in school 77.4 60.2 86.0 - 61.5

Less than a high school diploma 7.1 9.8 13.6 - 5.0

High school graduates, no college1 37.0 17.9 43.9 - 26.2

Some college or associate degree 22.0 24.6 17.6 - 18.7

Bachelor's degree and higher2 11.3 7.9 11.0 - 11.5

EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT

Total, 25 to 64 years (thousands) 8,741 1,926 1,031 761 112,582

Percent 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0

Less than a high school diploma 9.7 10.6 10.5 4.0 6.9

High school graduates, no college1 24.6 26.7 37.1 27.4 25.0

Some college or associate degree 26.8 28.8 26.0 25.4 27.0

Bachelor's degree and higher2 38.9 33.9 26.3 43.1 41.1

1 Includes persons with a high school diploma or equivalent.

2 Includes persons with bachelor's, master's, professional, and doctoral degrees.

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. Dash indicates no data or data that do not meet publication criteria (values not shown where base is less than 75,000).
Table 8. Employed workers with alternative and traditional work arrangements by occupation and industry, May 2017

(Percent distribution)

Characteristic

Workers with alternative arrangements

Independent

contractors

On-call

workers

Temporary

help agency

workers

Workers

provided by

contract firms

Workers with

traditional

arrangements

OCCUPATION

Total, 16 years and over (thousands) 10,614 2,579 1,356 933 137,853

Percent 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0

Management, professional, and related occupations 43.4 35.6 21.7 49.1 40.7

Management, business, and financial operations occupations 23.9 5.3 4.6 13.9 16.7

Professional and related occupations 19.5 30.3 17.1 35.1 24.0

Service occupations 18.1 23.7 13.8 24.6 17.0

Sales and office occupations 16.0 11.3 19.3 6.5 22.0

Sales and related occupations 13.5 4.5 2.8 2.4 9.8

Office and administrative support occupations 2.5 6.8 16.5 4.1 12.1

Natural resources, construction, and maintenance occupations 15.9 16.1 6.1 13.3 8.5

Farming, fishing, and forestry occupations 0.4 1.2 0.4 0.4 0.8

Construction and extraction occupations 12.1 11.7 3.4 8.8 4.5

Installation, maintenance, and repair occupations 3.3 3.2 2.2 4.0 3.2

Production, transportation, and material moving occupations 6.7 13.2 39.2 6.6 11.8

Production occupations 1.7 2.6 19.8 2.2 6.0

Transportation and material moving occupations 5.0 10.6 19.3 4.4 5.8

INDUSTRY

Total, 16 years and over (thousands) 10,614 2,579 1,356 933 137,853

Percent 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0

Agriculture and related industries 2.0 1.8 0.4 0.4 1.6

Mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction 0.1 0.8 0.6 1.6 0.5

Construction 19.3 11.4 3.6 7.2 5.8

Manufacturing 2.2 3.7 32.2 12.0 11.1

Wholesale trade 1.5 1.1 3.6 1.0 2.3

Retail trade 6.4 6.0 1.2 3.2 11.1

Transportation and utilities 5.7 8.6 3.0 6.6 5.0

Information 2.2 2.3 1.9 2.0 1.9

Financial activities 9.6 3.4 4.2 8.5 6.9

Professional and business services 25.1 6.6 26.8 17.0 10.7

Education and health services 9.6 35.3 15.0 18.3 24.0

Leisure and hospitality 6.2 10.1 2.0 4.4 9.6

Other services 9.7 4.6 3.1 2.5 4.6

Public administration 0.4 4.2 1.2 14.7 5.0

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. For a very small percentage of these workers, the industry was not provided.
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 or retirement plans, May 2017

Characteristic Total employed

(thousands)

Percent with health insurance

coverage

Total Provided by

employer1

Percent eligible for employerprovided pension or retirement plan1

Total

Included in

employer-provided

plan

Contingent workers:

Estimate 1 1,958 75.1 13.4 14.2 8.3

Estimate 2 2,511 72.2 12.0 12.2 7.3

Estimate 3 5,858 73.4 25.1 23.4 18.4

Noncontingent workers 147,473 83.5 49.8 47.6 43.4

With alternative arrangements:

Independent contractors 10,614 75.4 - - -

On-call workers 2,579 77.0 28.2 35.4 30.1

Temporary help agency workers 1,356 67.3 12.8 12.7 6.6

Workers provided by contract firms 933 85.3 41.3 48.1 38.3

With traditional arrangements 137,853 84.0 53.4 50.8 46.3

1 Excludes the self-employed (incorporated and unincorporated) and independent contractors.

- 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, May 2017

(Percent distribution)

Preference

Contingent workers

Estimate 1 Estimate 2 Estimate 3

Total, 16 years and over (thousands) 1,958 2,511 5,858

Percent 100.0 100.0 100.0

Prefer noncontingent employment 62.5 58.8 55.1

Prefer contingent employment 29.9 31.8 32.8

It depends 7.0 8.5 9.5

Not available 0.6 0.9 2.6

NOTE: Noncontingent employment refers to work that does 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, May 2017

(Percent distribution)

Preference Independent contractors On-call workers Temporary help agency

workers

Total, 16 years and over (thousands) 10,614 2,579 1,356

Percent 100.0 100.0 100.0

Prefer traditional arrangement 8.8 43.0 46.4

Prefer alternative arrangement 79.1 43.8 38.5

It depends 7.5 12.2 12.1

Not available 4.5 1.0 3.0

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, May 2017

Arrangement Total

(thousands)

Percent distribution

Contingent workers

Estimate 1 Estimate 2 Estimate 3

Noncontingent

workers

With alternative arrangements:

Independent contractors 10,614 - 3.2 3.2 96.8

On-call workers 2,579 7.7 7.8 21.1 78.9

Temporary help agency workers 1,356 16.8 22.9 42.0 58.0

Workers provided by contract firms 933 3.6 5.1 15.0 85.0

With traditional arrangements 137,853 1.0 1.1 3.1 96.9

- 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, race, and Hispanic or Latino ethnicity, May 2017

Characteristic

Contingent workers

Estimate 1 Estimate 2 Estimate 3

Noncontingent

workers

Workers with alternative arrangements

Independent

contractors

On-call

workers

Temporary

help

agency

workers

Workers

provided

by contract

firms

Workers with

traditional

arrangements

FULL-TIME WORKERS

Total, 16 years and over $592 $611 $685 $886 $851 $797 $521 $1,077 $884

Men 609 653 719 957 897 860 522 1,157 953

Women 524 587 625 808 738 673 520 673 809

White 568 595 702 914 895 814 511 1,118 913

Black or African American 602 609 581 699 654 748 520 740 697

Asian 956 995 1,042 1,153 990 - 1,058 1,519 1,147

Hispanic or Latino ethnicity 467 475 524 686 700 676 492 964 685

PART-TIME WORKERS

Total, 16 years and over 197 197 228 257 333 229 263 322 255

Men 187 186 233 262 377 295 297 - 256

Women 206 205 224 255 307 211 246 303 254

White 199 198 229 266 342 236 257 339 264

Black or African American 160 160 203 221 294 182 252 - 224

Asian 262 262 269 222 487 213 - - 215

Hispanic or Latino ethnicity 220 221 264 254 272 316 305 - 253

Dash indicates no data or data that do not meet publication criteria (values 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 alternative and traditional arrangements. Full- or part-time status is determined by hours usually worked at sole or primary job.

Persons whose ethnicity is identified as Hispanic or Latino may be of any race.