Nearly one-quarter of Canadians work in the gig economy, new poll finds | CBC News

Many Canadians are turning to gig work to supplement their income and meet the rising cost of living, according to a new report assessing their insurance needs from insurance provider Securian Canada.

The poll conducted in collaboration with the Angus Reid Institute found that nearly a quarter of respondents participate in gig work, defined as short-term jobs or tasks that do not guarantee steady work. 

Many say they’re taking on the extra work on top of a regular job to meet the rising cost of living. Researchers say it’s a sign that some traditional jobs aren’t keeping up with financial pressures while the job market shifts to favour more short-term gigs and contract work. 

Cheryl Loh, a freelance graphic designer based in Vancouver, said she kept up with the cost of living by leaving the traditional workforce to offer graphic design services on a project basis.

“I get to determine how I spend my day, and there’s no limit to the income I want to make,” Loh said. “It’s all up to me.”

Loh said she first joined the gig economy to launch a passion project — she designed a line of greeting cards, which she sold in her spare time. 

“In the beginning, it was very much just for fun,” she said. “There was no pressure on it being a full-time income.”

During the pandemic, Loh said she shifted gears. Her greeting cards took a backseat to freelance graphic design work, which she says is not her primary source of income. Now, instead of a regular salary, she works with clients who pay her for each project.

While she might not have the same stability as a full-time job, Loh sets her own rates and hours and gets to choose what projects she takes on. She estimates she makes more than she would at a regular full-time job. 

“It’s very difficult for me to imagine going back to a traditional job because I feel like I have so much more ownership of my time,” she said. 

Loh is one of millions of Canadians Securian estimates is participating in the gig economy. 

The Canadian gig economy

Statistics Canada defines “gig workers” as those who enter more casual work arrangements with employers, like short-term contracts or agreements to complete specific one-off tasks. 

Often, it happens through apps, including ride-hailing and food delivery services. 

Securian surveyed 1,515 Canadians in the Angus Reid Forum and asked how many earn income “outside of standard, employer-employee relationships,” which may be a broader definition of gig work. 

“This is a rapidly emerging segment of the workforce that isn’t well understood,” said Nigel Branker, the chief executive officer of Securian Canada. 

The survey found younger workers are more likely to participate in gig work, with 30 per cent of respondents between the ages of 18 and 34 participating in the gig economy.

About 23 per cent of respondents between 35 and 54 said they were gig workers. Of respondents over 55, only 16 per cent said they participated. 

Racialized people are more likely to be gig workers than white people, the survey found. Of the Canadians surveyed, 32 per cent of racialized respondents participated in the gig economy, while 20 per cent of white respondents were gig workers. 

A second survey asked 505 Canadian gig workers about their employment. 

Of gig workers, it found 30 per cent offered specialized services like consulting or photography, 26 per cent sold items on Amazon or Etsy, and 21 per cent offered freelance services like graphic design or tutoring. 

Food delivery workers accounted for eight per cent of respondents, and ride-hailing drivers for three per cent. 

‘Feeling the pinch’

Branker said he was surprised how many gig workers also had traditional jobs.

More than half of respondents said they’re taking on gig work on top of a traditional full-time or part-time job.

About a third of gig workers surveyed said they need the work, despite 44 per cent making more than $100,000 per year. 

Sylvia Fuller, a labour market researcher at the University of British Columbia, said the survey sheds light on how people are feeling the rising cost of living.  

“Even folks that are earning incomes that we would have thought would be more than sufficient in previous times are really feeling some financial stress and feeling the pinch,” she said. 

While workers are turning to freelance or contract jobs to supplement their income, Fuller said it’s employers who are driving a larger shift toward gig work.

She said employers have been less inclined to hire permanent workers, who come with costs, like benefits or pensions.

“There’s been this attempt to reclassify workers either as temporary workers or as self-employed independent contractors so that employers don’t need to bear responsibilities to workers,” she said. “This is really an employer-driven phenomenon.”