had offset their spells of unemployment, loss of working hours, loss of benefits, or frozen wages in their formal employment “ very much ” or “ somewhat. ” in addition, three - fourths of uber drivers say that the greater control over their work schedules that uber allows has made their lives better. 12 however, there are likely many workers who would prefer regular full - time traditional work to contingent work, particularly if much of the power in determining hours worked in alternative work arrangements belongs to the employer. technological advances have enabled firms to use justin - time strategies for their employees, making them in effect on - call workers. this is a rising trend in industries such as retail and food preparation. several recent articles describe the challenges faced by these just - in - time workers, who must conform their hours to the daily and even hourly ebbs and flows of business, often not knowing whether they will have work on a given day until they call in that morning to inquire. 13 these arrangements can leave workers scrambling to patch together child care, elder care, and transportation to meet the often unpredictable demands of their workplace, while making it difficult to engage in regularly scheduled activities to enhance their income and opportunities, such as a second job or career training. while such workers often are not given full - time work, they often must make themselves available to work full - time hours. according to one survey, 71 percent of retail workers in new york stated that their hours fluctuated from week to week, while half said their employers could change their hours at will. 14 it is also notable that the increase in contingent work over the past decade has coincided with an increase of one - third in the share of employees working part time but who would prefer to work full time from 3 percent prior to the great recession to close to 4 percent today. in addition, contingent workers may receive lower wages, less training, and fewer benefits than their counterparts with traditional jobs. typically, the wages of low - skilled employees within a company are boosted by social norms regarding pay equity, and nonpecuniary benefits are often equalized across a company ’ s employees, in certain cases as mandated by law. 15 however, the wages that contractors receive are unlikely to reflect the same equity considerations. moreover, contingent work generally does not offer employer - based benefits and workplace protections that come with traditional employment opportunities, like overtime compensation, minimum wage protections, health insurance, family leave, employer - sponsored retirement plans, workers ’ compensation, and paid

lael brainard : the " gig " economy - implications of the growth of contingent work speech by ms lael brainard, member of the board of governors of the federal reserve system, at " evolution of work ", a convening cosponsored by the board of governors of the federal reserve system, the federal reserve bank of new york, and the freelancers union, new york city, 17 november 2016. * * * i would like to thank bill dudley and sara horowitz for inviting me to participate in today ’ s conference. the subject we are tackling today — the evolution of work — is a particular interest of mine and is a matter of great importance to the federal reserve. the congress has mandated the federal reserve to implement monetary policy so as to promote maximum employment and stable prices. our dual mandate recognizes the importance of work in enabling people to contribute to the financial security of their family and the prosperity of their community and the country overall. moreover, there is a long - standing recognition that secure and dignified work provides a key sense of purpose and worth. understanding the changing nature of employment in today ’ s economy is not only central to the mission of the federal reserve, but also goes to the core of who we are as providers for our families and productive members of society. 1 in contrast to traditional work arrangements, in which an employee has a durable employment relationship with a single primary employer, a large and growing proportion of the workforce is working through contracting, temporary arrangements, on - call arrangements, or as freelancers being hired for episodic “ gigs. ” broadly speaking, contingent arrangements are more transitory than traditional arrangements, in the extreme consisting of a single transaction or gig. they often provide considerably greater flexibility than long - term employment contracts, allowing workers and employers to move in and out of work relationships easily. depending on the nature of the employment relationship, this enhanced flexibility could have benefits and costs that accrue to workers and employers very differently. although they have always been a feature of the american economic landscape, there has been a sharp increase in the prevalence of contingent working arrangements over the past decade, and it is too early to tell how much of this acceleration is a cyclical phenomenon associated with the great recession or reflects a structural trend. the growing share and variety of contingent work has important implications for policy and puts a premium on data and research exploring this topic. for monetary policy, the growth of contingent work affects the way we assess maximum employment