More and more of the workforce is becoming independent

We all seek freedom and independence at one time or another throughout our lifetime. Whether it be the freedom to make your own decisions when you first live on your own or to get yourself from point A to B when you get your license, we typically associate this desire for freedom with youth, but seeking control of our lives is a desire that continues with us throughout our entire lives. The Covid-19 pandemic was a reckoning for many to finally take a leap and reclaim their sense of control regarding work-life balance. A new National Bureau of Economic Research study found that about 15% of the workforce are now independent contractors. We say this because informal work and side hustles continue to make complex data hard to tape down as the gig economy rises. The report’s synopsis describes the contractor workforce as “elusive” due to a myriad of factors, including the miscoding of contract workers who work on multiple projects for a company. The findings of this study have implications for the economy and the demographic profile typically associated with contract workers. The study found millions more Americans are self-employed than previously estimated by reports like the 2022 survey from the freelancing platform Upwork. More than impacting the work culture, economy, and overall data, this trend has become the new norm, not seeming to be going anywhere for awhile. What can you do with this information? 

Start including independent contractors in your book of business. Consider what you can offer contractors to incentivize them to work for you, not the competition. For example, separate benefits with no employer sponsor and no open enrollment periods offer the flexibility contract workers need regarding benefits. 

Source

https://www.benefitnews.com/articles/15-percent-of-the-labor-force-may-be-independent-contractors

Are you presenting HealthEE by HBG as a retain and attract tool? You should be.

The workforce is reshuffling. There is no doubt about it. Our new normal has sparked change in every industry universally. Employees want more, more flexibility, more balance, more control, just more. Whether they find that sense of more in another role or as a gig worker or freelancer, many are still trying to find the answer to their employment desires. According to the US Chamber of Commerce, the food and hospitality industries are among the most struggling industries to retain workers. In these sectors, the bulk of sales happen to the end consumer through the part-time workers, so they must be trained and controlled, armed with the knowledge to close the deal. No one can deny the importance of the customer experience. It is a heavyweight, especially considering those expected to hold it often feel the least appreciated. Traditionally the part-time worker is provided a different cachet than the corporate counterparts, no PTO, no benefits, and poor hours during the holidays while the rest of us are home with our families. While this model has worked in the past, the post covid employee isn’t biting in the same way anymore to attract and retain the necessary talent to close the sales in the store and behind the counter.
You can find the usual retention techniques across this platform and several others, including the shared working community; WeWork posted an article highlighting that retention means work-life balance, hiring good leaders, and building good teams, but how does one attract good leaders and sound teams? Businesses must convey a value matching the ideals of the potential hires they seek. Now while the most obvious of the bunch is providing employees with the ability to work from home, this is only an option for some industries. An employee can’t show a guest to their room or take a customer’s order from their home. However, there are other ways employers can give potential employees a sense of control and empowerment. Research from job boards Indeed and Glassdoor finds benefits and flexibility remain essential to attract talent. For the businesses that can’t afford to offer higher pay and can’t provide their employees a work-from-home option, how does offering the part-time workforce affordable benefits at no cost to the employer sound? Here is where Healthy Business Group steps in; their flagship product, HealthEE by HBG, is the online benefits solution for employers to offer employees at no cost to the employer, where employees can take control of their benefits and can choose to have more of what they need and less of what they don’t, now that’s an incentive.

Sources

https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/career-development/how-to-retain-an-employeehttps://www.uschamber.com/workforce/understanding-americas-labor-shortage-the-most-impacted-industrieshttps://www.zippia.com/advice/great-resignation-statistics/https://www.nytimes.com/2022/09/12/business/economy/labor-participation-covid.htmlhttps://www.hrmorning.com/news/benefits-key-role/https://www.fm-magazine.com/news/2022/dec/benefits-flexibility-attract-talent-report-finds.htmlhttps://www.wework.com/ideas/professional-development/management-leadership/employee-retention-what-it-is-best-strategies-and-more’

Do you know what you’re missing from your book of business?

It is difficult to discuss the current state of affairs for any industry without returning to the long-lasting effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, so bear with us. Among the challenges and work-from-home realizations, there were some among us not afforded the luxury of WFH. Essential workers, we dubbed them, the (in many cases) part-time workers keeping our supermarkets, delivery services, transportation, and even hospitals functioning. Even now, as we have returned to a sense of normalcy, WFH is still prevalent, and part time employees are still on the front lines. They form relationships with a brand’s consumers, the ones who are the faces of a company day in and day out. And yet they are missing from most brokers’ books of business. Why? 

Have we not experienced the vitality of the part-time worker these past few years? And of course we are also amidst a movement known as the great resignation, meaning companies need to do more to retain their employees. Covid-19 showed us how much we need part-time workers, but it also gave those workers every reason to want to quit their jobs. It’s up to employers now to find new solutions to hold fast to those employees and find new ones in a time where there are a plentiful number of WFH postings.

The pandemic has left brokers with new opportunities. Where traditionally, a broker’s book of business has not included the part-time employee, now they can. Not only is this a new market for brokers, but it also provides tangible value to the business owners. Part-time employees are the backbone of companies, and providing possible and accessible benefits will up current retention and incentivize new employees alike.