CWS News Release (2005)

Attachment C - Contingent and Alternative Employment Arrangements News Release.pdf

Contingent Work Supplement to the Current Population Survey

CWS News Release (2005)

OMB: 1220-0153

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691-5902

USDL 05-1433
For release: 10:00 A.M. EDT
Wednesday, July 27, 2005

CONTINGENT AND ALTERNATIVE EMPLOYMENT ARRANGEMENTS,
FEBRUARY 2005
The proportion of U.S. workers holding contingent jobs was little different in February 2005 than in
February 2001, the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor reported today. Contingent
workers are persons who do not expect their jobs to last or who reported that their jobs are temporary.
Using three alternative measures, contingent workers accounted for 1.8 to 4.1 percent of total employment in
February 2005. (See table A.) In February 2001, the last time the survey was conducted, they ranged from
1.7 to 4.0 percent. The first time the survey was conducted, in February 1995, the estimates ranged from
2.2 to 4.9 percent.
The analysis in this release focuses on the broadest estimate of contingent workers—all those who do not
expect their current job to last.
In addition to contingent workers, the survey also identified those workers who have alternative work
arrangements. In February 2005, there were 10.3 million independent contractors (7.4 percent of total
employment), 2.5 million on-call workers (1.8 percent of total employment), 1.2 million temporary help
agency workers (0.9 percent of total employment), and 813,000 workers provided by contract firms
(0.6 percent of total employment). (See table 8.) The proportion of the total employed who were independent contractors increased from 6.4 percent in February 2001. The proportions for the other three
alternative work arrangements showed little or no change from February 2001.
An employment arrangement may be defined as both contingent and alternative, but this is not
automatically the case because contingency is defined separately from the four alternative work arrangements.
In February 2005, the proportion of workers employed in alternative arrangements who also were classified
as contingent workers ranged from 3 percent of independent contractors to 61 percent of temporary help
agency workers. (See table 12.)
Data on contingent and alternative employment arrangements have been collected periodically in
supplements to the Current Population Survey (CPS) since February 1995. The CPS is a monthly
nationwide survey of about 60,000 households that obtains information on employment, unemployment,
earnings, demographics, and other characteristics of the civilian noninstitutionalized population age 16 and
over. A description of the concepts and definitions used in the supplement is included in the Technical Note
that follows this analysis. Some highlights from the February 2005 survey follow:

Table A. Contingent workers and workers in alternative arrangements as a percent of total
employment, February 2005
Definition and alternative estimates of 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 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 estimates. 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.

1.8

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. For temporary help and contract workers, contingency is determined on the basis of the
expected duration and tenure with the client to whom they have been 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 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.

4.1

Type of alternative arrangement
Independent contractors
Workers who were identified as independent contractors, independent consultants, or freelance
workers, whether they were self-employed or wage and salary workers.

7.4

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.

1.8

Temporary help agency workers
Workers who were paid by a temporary help agency, whether or not their job was temporary.

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.

• Under the broadest measure of contingency, there were 5.7 million contingent workers in February
2005, accounting for about 4 percent of total employment.
• Contingent workers were twice as likely as noncontingent workers to be under age 25. Contingent
workers were less likely to be white than noncontingent workers.
• Young contingent workers (16- to 24-year olds) were more likely than their noncontingent counterparts
to be enrolled in school.
• More than half of contingent workers (55 percent) would have preferred a permanent job.
• The demographic characteristics of workers in alternative employment arrangements varied widely
between the four arrangements. For example, independent contractors were more likely than workers in
traditional arrangements to be older, male, and white. Temporary help agency workers were more likely
to be young, female, and black or Hispanic or Latino.
• The majority of independent contractors (82 percent) preferred their work arrangement to a traditional
job, while only 32 percent of temporary help agency workers preferred their current arrangement.
Demographic Characteristics of Contingent Workers
Using the broadest estimate of contingency, 5.7 million workers were classified as contingent in February
2005. Contingent workers were twice as likely as noncontingent workers to be under 25 years old (27
versus 13 percent). Of these young workers, nearly three-fifths of contingent workers were enrolled in
school, compared with about two-fifths of youth with noncontingent jobs. Contingent workers age 25 to 64
were found at both ends of the educational attainment spectrum. Compared with noncontingent workers,
contingent workers were more likely to have less than a high school diploma (16 percent compared with 9
percent) and more likely to hold at least a bachelor’s degree (37 percent compared with 33 percent). (See
tables 1, 2, and 3.)
A slightly larger proportion of contingent workers than noncontingent workers were women (49 versus
47 percent). Contingent workers were slightly less likely to be white (79 percent compared with 83 percent)
and much more likely to be Hispanic or Latino (21 percent compared with 13 percent) than their
noncontingent counterparts.
Part-time workers—individuals who usually work less than 35 hours a week—made up two-fifths of
contingent workers, compared with less than one-fifth of noncontingent workers. However, the vast majority
of part-time workers (91 percent) were not employed in contingent arrangements. (See tables 1 and 2.)
Occupation and Industry of Contingent Workers
As in previous surveys, contingent workers were distributed throughout the major occupational groups.
Compared with noncontingent workers, contingent workers were more likely to work in professional and
related occupations and construction and extraction occupations. With regard to industries, contingent
workers were more likely to hold jobs in the professional and business services, education and health
services, and construction industries. (See table 4.)
Job Preferences of Contingent Workers
The majority of contingent workers (55 percent) would have preferred a job that was permanent.
However, more than 1 in every 3 said they preferred their current arrangement. (The remainder expressed
no clear preference.) (See table 10.) By comparison, the proportion was 40 percent in February 2001.

Compensation of Contingent Workers
Full-time contingent wage and salary workers had median weekly earnings of $488 in February 2005.
(See table 13.) (Beginning with the February 2001 survey, information on the earnings of noncontingent
workers is not available because it is no longer collected.)
Contingent workers continued to be much less likely to have employer-provided health insurance. Less
than one-fifth of contingent workers (18 percent) were covered by health insurance provided by their
employer, compared with slightly more than half of noncontingent workers (52 percent). Although four-fifths
of contingent workers did not receive health insurance from their employer, nearly three-fifths (59 percent)
did have health insurance from some source. (See table 9.)
Contingent workers also were much less likely to be eligible for employer-provided pension plans. Half
of noncontingent workers were eligible for such plans, while only about 1 in every 5 contingent workers was
eligible. Among those who were eligible, contingent workers also were much less likely to participate in such
plans. (See table 9.)
Independent Contractors
Independent contractors were the largest of the four alternative work arrangements. In February 2005,
there were about 10.3 million independent contractors, accounting for 7.4 percent of the employed. These
workers were more likely than workers in traditional arrangements to be age 35 and over (81 versus 64
percent), male (65 versus 52 percent), and white (89 versus 82 percent). Thirty-six percent of independent
contractors had at least a bachelor’s degree in February 2005, compared with 33 percent of workers with
traditional arrangements. (See tables 5, 6, and 7.)
Independent contractors were more likely than those with 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, financial activities, and professional and business services. Fewer than 1 in 10
independent contractors said they would prefer a traditional work arrangement. (See tables 8 and 11.)
On-call Workers
The second largest group of workers employed in alternative arrangements was on-call workers. Nearly
2.5 million workers (1.8 percent of total employed persons) were on-call workers in February 2005. The
characteristics of on-call workers were similar to workers with traditional arrangements, except that on-call
workers were more likely to be young and to have less than a high school diploma. Twenty percent of oncall workers were 16- to 24-year olds, compared with 14 percent of traditional workers. Among on-call
workers age 25 to 64, 14 percent did not have a high school diploma, compared with 9 percent of workers
in traditional arrangements. (See tables 5, 6, and 7.)
On-call workers were much more likely than traditional workers to hold jobs in professional, service, and
construction and extraction occupations. By industry, on-call workers were overrepresented, compared with
traditional workers, in construction and education and health services. About 44 percent of on-call workers
usually worked part time, a much higher proportion than either traditional workers or workers in other
alternative arrangements. On-call workers were about equally likely to prefer a traditional arrangement to
their alternative arrangement. (See tables 6, 8, and 11.)

Temporary Help Agency Workers
In February 2005, there were about 1.2 million temporary help agency workers, accounting for 0.9
percent of all employment. These workers were more likely than traditional workers to be women and
young. Fifty-three percent of temporary help agency workers were women, compared with about 48
percent of traditional workers. Nearly half of temporary help agency workers were under the age of 35
compared with only 36 percent of workers in traditional arrangements. Temporary help agency employees
were much more likely than workers with traditional arrangements to be black (23 versus 11 percent) and
Hispanic or Latino (21 versus 13 percent). Seventeen percent of temporary help agency workers ages 25
to 64 years old had less than a high school diploma, compared with 9 percent of workers in traditional
arrangements. (See tables 5, 6, and 7.)
In terms of occupation, temporary help agency workers were more likely than traditional workers to hold
office and administrative support and production, transportation, and material moving jobs. Compared with
traditional workers, temporary help agency workers were more frequently employed in the manufacturing and
professional and business services industries. (See table 8.)
Among workers employed in alternative arrangements, those employed by temporary help agencies were
the least likely to prefer their current arrangement (32 percent). About 56 percent said they would prefer a
traditional arrangement. (See table 11.)
Workers Provided by Contract Companies
The smallest of the four alternative arrangements was contract company employment, with 813,000
workers or 0.6 percent of total employment. These are individuals who were identified as working for a
contract company and who usually worked at the customer’s worksite. Nearly 70 percent of contract
company workers were men, compared with 52 percent of traditional workers. Compared with traditional
workers, employees of contract companies were more likely to be black and Hispanic or Latino. Among
25- to 64-year olds, those employed by contract companies were more likely than traditional workers to
have less than a high school diploma (13 versus 9 percent); however, the group also had a higher proportion
of college graduates (37 versus 33 percent). (See tables 5, 6, and 7.)
Contract company employees were much more likely than workers with traditional arrangements to hold
jobs in professional, service, and construction and extraction occupations. Compared with traditional
workers, contract company workers were more frequently employed in the construction industry and public
administration. (See table 8.)
Compensation of Workers in Alternative Arrangements
Median usual weekly earnings varied widely among full-time wage and salary workers in the four
alternative employment arrangements. Contract company workers ($756) and independent contractors
($716) earned significantly more than on-call workers ($519) and temporary help agency workers ($414).
(See table 13.)
The differences in earnings between the four alternative work arrangements reflect in part the
demographic and occupational concentration of each arrangement. For example, independent contractors
tend to be older, highly educated individuals who work in relatively high-paying management, business, and
financial operations occupations. In contrast, temporary help agency workers tend to be younger, lesseducated persons who hold relatively low-paying office and administrative support jobs. (See tables 5, 6,
and 7.)

Compared with workers in traditional arrangements, workers in alternative arrangements (except those
employed by contract companies) were much less likely to be covered by health insurance from any source
than workers in traditional arrangements. Workers in all alternative work arrangements were less likely than
workers in traditional arrangements to have health insurance provided by their employer. At 49 percent,
workers provided by contract firms were the most likely to have health insurance coverage from their
employer, while employees of temporary help agencies (8 percent) had the lowest rate of coverage. Fifty-six
percent of workers with traditional arrangements had employer-provided health insurance coverage. (See
table 9.)
Workers in alternative arrangements were also less likely than those in traditional arrangements to be
eligible for employer-provided pension plans. As with health insurance coverage, there was considerable
variation between the four groups. For example, contract company employees were the most likely to be
eligible at 43 percent, while only about 9 percent of workers in temporary help agencies were eligible. In
contrast, 53 percent of employees with traditional work arrangements were eligible for employer-provided
pension plans. (See table 9.)

Technical Note
Source of data
The data presented in this release were collected through a
supplement to the February 2005 Current Population Survey
(CPS), a monthly survey of about 60,000 households that
provides data on employment and unemployment for the nation.
The CPS is conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau for the Bureau
of Labor Statistics (BLS). The purpose of this supplement was
to obtain information from workers on whether they held
contingent jobs, that is, jobs which are 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 or contract firms.
Several major changes introduced into the CPS in 2003 affect
the data that are presented in this release. These include the
introduction of Census 2000 population controls, the use of
new questions about race and Hispanic or Latino ethnicity, the
presentation of data for Asians, and the introduction of new
industry and occupational classification systems. For a detailed
discussion of these changes and their impact on CPS data, see
“Revisions to the Current Population Survey Effective in
January 2003” in the February 2003 issue of Employment and
Earnings and available at http://www.bls.gov/cps/rvcps03.pdf
on the BLS Web site.
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 of 1995, 1997, 1999, and
2001.
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 90percent 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 the correct
information, and errors made in the collection or processing of
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
Employment and Earnings.
Concepts and definitions
Defining and estimating the contingent workforce.
Contingent workers are defined as those who do not have an
explicit or implicit contract for long-term employment. Several
pieces of information are collected in the supplement from which
the existence of a contingent employment arrangement can be
discerned. 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. For
workers who have a job with an intermediary, namely a
temporary help agency or a contract company, information is
collected about their employment at the place they are 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 fits the
conceptual definition of contingent is whether the job is
temporary or not expected to continue. The first questions of
the supplement are:
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 answer “yes” to the first question or “no”
to the second are then asked a series of questions to distinguish
persons who are in temporary jobs from those who, for personal
reasons, are temporarily holding jobs that offer the opportunity
of ongoing employment. For example, students holding parttime 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.
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 dictated that the job is short term.
Workers also are asked how long they expect to stay in their
current job and how long they have been with their current
employer. The rationale for asking how long an individual
expects to remain in his or her current job is 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 a job has been ongoing. Having remained with
an employer for more than a year may be taken as evidence 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:
Under estimate 1, which is the narrowest, contingent
workers are wage and salary workers who indicate that they
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. Selfemployed workers, both incorporated and unincorporated, and
independent contractors are excluded from the count of
contingent workers under estimate 1; the rationale is that people
who work for themselves, by definition, have ongoing
employment arrangements, although they may face financial
risks. Individuals who work 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 have 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 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 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 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 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 has held a job for 5 years
could be considered contingent if he or she now views the job
as temporary. These conditions on expected and current tenure
are not relaxed for the self-employed and independent

contractors because they are asked a different set of questions
than wage and salary workers.
Defining alternative employment arrangements. 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. Definitions of each category, as well
as the main questions used to identify workers in each category,
follow.
Independent contractors are all those who are identified as
independent contractors, consultants, and free-lance workers
in the supplement, regardless of whether they are 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 are asked, “Are you self-employed as an independent
contractor, independent consultant, 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 are business
operators such as shop owners or restaurateurs. 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 free-lance worker? That is,
someone who obtains customers on their own to provide a
product or service.” Eighty-seven percent of independent
contractors were identified as self-employed in the main
questionnaire, while 13 percent were identified as wage and
salary workers. Conversely, nearly 3 in every 5 of the selfemployed 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
answer 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, are not included
in this category.
Temporary help agency workers are all those who are 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 is mediated by temporary help agencies is
overstated. This category includes workers who say their job
is temporary and answer affirmatively 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?”
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 are imposed to focus on
workers whose employment appears 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 includes workers who answer 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 have to

respond negatively to the question, “Are you usually assigned
to more than one customer?” In addition, these workers have
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) 6916378 (e-mail: [email protected]). 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 available on the Internet at
http://www.bls.gov/opub/mlr/1996/10/art1full.pdf.
Information in this release is made available to sensory
impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: (202) 6915200; TDD message referral phone: 1-800-877-8339.

Table 1. Employed contingent and noncontingent workers by selected characteristics, February 2005
(In thousands)
Contingent workers
Characteristic

Total employed
Estimate 1

Estimate 2

Estimate 3

Noncontingent
workers

AGE AND SEX
Total, 16 years and over .........................
16 to 19 years .............................................
20 to 24 years .............................................
25 to 34 years .............................................
35 to 44 years .............................................
45 to 54 years .............................................
55 to 64 years .............................................
65 years and over .......................................

138,952
5,510
13,114
30,103
34,481
32,947
17,980
4,817

2,504
308
606
693
415
263
143
76

3,177
338
688
874
580
387
198
111

5,705
476
1,077
1,447
1,044
875
536
250

133,247
5,035
12,036
28,656
33,437
32,072
17,445
4,567

Men, 16 years and over ..........................
16 to 19 years .............................................
20 to 24 years .............................................
25 to 34 years .............................................
35 to 44 years .............................................
45 to 54 years .............................................
55 to 64 years .............................................
65 years and over .......................................

73,946
2,579
6,928
16,624
18,523
17,193
9,485
2,615

1,325
145
358
395
245
95
70
17

1,648
157
394
512
303
140
107
35

2,914
229
597
829
540
368
261
92

71,032
2,351
6,331
15,794
17,983
16,825
9,224
2,523

Women, 16 years and over ....................
16 to 19 years .............................................
20 to 24 years .............................................
25 to 34 years .............................................
35 to 44 years .............................................
45 to 54 years .............................................
55 to 64 years .............................................
65 years and over .......................................

65,006
2,931
6,186
13,480
15,958
15,754
8,495
2,202

1,180
163
249
298
171
168
73
58

1,529
182
294
362
277
247
91
76

2,790
247
481
618
504
508
275
158

62,216
2,684
5,705
12,862
15,454
15,247
8,220
2,044

115,043
14,688
6,083
18,062

2,007
296
121
603

2,534
387
161
704

4,521
660
350
1,185

110,522
14,028
5,733
16,876

113,798
25,154

1,367
1,137

1,812
1,364

3,410
2,294

110,387
22,860

RACE AND HISPANIC OR
LATINO ETHNICITY
White ..........................................................
Black or African American ..........................
Asian ...........................................................
Hispanic or Latino ethnicity .........................
FULL- OR PART-TIME STATUS
Full-time workers ........................................
Part-time workers .......................................

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. In

addition, persons whose ethnicity is Hispanic or Latino may be of
any race and, therefore, are classified by ethnicity as well as by
race. Detail for other characteristics may not sum to totals due to
rounding.

Table 2. Employed contingent and noncontingent workers by selected characteristics,
February 2005
(Percent distribution)
Contingent workers
Characteristic
Estimate 1

Estimate 2

Estimate 3

Noncontingent
workers

100.0
12.3
24.2
27.7
16.6
10.5
5.7
3.0

100.0
10.7
21.7
27.5
18.2
12.2
6.2
3.5

100.0
8.3
18.9
25.4
18.3
15.3
9.4
4.4

100.0
3.8
9.0
21.5
25.1
24.1
13.1
3.4

52.9
5.8
14.3
15.8
9.8
3.8
2.8
.7

51.9
4.9
12.4
16.1
9.5
4.4
3.4
1.1

51.1
4.0
10.5
14.5
9.5
6.4
4.6
1.6

53.3
1.8
4.8
11.9
13.5
12.6
6.9
1.9

47.1
6.5
9.9
11.9
6.8
6.7
2.9
2.3

48.1
5.7
9.3
11.4
8.7
7.8
2.9
2.4

48.9
4.3
8.4
10.8
8.8
8.9
4.8
2.8

46.7
2.0
4.3
9.7
11.6
11.4
6.2
1.5

80.1
11.8
4.8
24.1

79.8
12.2
5.1
22.2

79.2
11.6
6.1
20.8

82.9
10.5
4.3
12.7

54.6
45.4

57.0
43.0

59.8
40.2

82.8
17.2

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. In addition, persons

whose ethnicity is Hispanic or Latino may be of any race
and, therefore, are classified by ethnicity as well as by
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, February 2005
(Percent distribution)
Contingent workers
Characteristic
Estimate 1

Estimate 2

Estimate 3

Noncontingent
workers

SCHOOL ENROLLMENT
Total, 16 to 24 years (thousands) ...........
Percent ...................................................

915
100.0

1,027
100.0

1,553
100.0

17,071
100.0

Enrolled ......................................................
Not enrolled ................................................
Less than a high school diploma ............
High school graduates, no college 1 .......
Some college or associate degree .........
Bachelor’s degree and higher 2 ..............

59.8
40.2
11.4
15.4
7.3
6.1

57.5
42.5
11.1
15.2
10.8
5.4

59.1
40.9
12.4
13.2
10.3
5.1

41.6
58.4
9.2
25.4
15.0
8.7

Total, 25 to 64 years (thousands) ...........
Percent ...................................................

1,514
100.0

2,039
100.0

3,902
100.0

111,610
100.0

Less than a high school diploma ..............
High school graduates, no college 1 ...........
Some college or associate degree .............
Bachelor’s degree and higher 2 ..................

20.3
25.6
24.0
30.1

18.7
25.2
22.7
33.4

15.5
24.5
23.3
36.6

8.6
29.7
28.5
33.1

EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT

1 Includes persons with a high school diploma or
equivalent.
2 Includes persons with a 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,
February 2005
(Percent distribution)
Contingent workers
Characteristic
Estimate 1

Estimate 2

Estimate 3

Noncontingent
workers

OCCUPATION
Total, 16 years and over (thousands) .............................................
Percent ...........................................................................................

2,504
100.0

3,177
100.0

5,705
100.0

133,247
100.0

Management, professional, and related occupations ........................
Management, business, and financial operations occupations .......
Professional and related occupations ..............................................

28.4
5.5
22.8

30.7
8.0
22.6

35.9
8.7
27.2

35.2
14.6
20.6

Service occupations ..........................................................................

17.3

17.6

15.7

15.6

Sales and office occupations .............................................................
Sales and related occupations ........................................................
Office and administrative support occupations ................................

24.3
4.9
19.4

22.5
6.0
16.5

20.6
5.7
14.8

26.0
12.1
13.9

Natural resources, construction, and maintenance occupations .......
Farming, fishing, and forestry occupations ......................................
Construction and extraction occupations .........................................
Installation, maintenance, and repair occupations ..........................

16.5
2.4
11.4
2.7

16.7
2.0
12.3
2.4

16.1
2.1
11.1
2.9

10.2
.5
5.8
3.8

Production, transportation, and material moving occupations ...........
Production occupations ...................................................................
Transportation and material moving occupations ............................

13.6
4.5
9.1

12.5
4.0
8.5

11.7
5.2
6.5

13.1
6.8
6.2

Total, 16 years and over (thousands) .............................................
Percent ...........................................................................................

2,504
100.0

3,177
100.0

5,705
100.0

133,247
100.0

Agriculture and related industries .......................................................
Mining .................................................................................................
Construction .......................................................................................
Manufacturing .....................................................................................
Wholesale trade ..................................................................................
Retail trade .........................................................................................
Transportation and utilities .................................................................
Information .........................................................................................
Financial activities ..............................................................................
Professional and business services ...................................................
Education and health services ............................................................
Leisure and hospitality ........................................................................
Other services ....................................................................................
Public administration ..........................................................................

2.5
.7
13.0
6.7
3.2
6.4
5.0
1.6
1.4
18.2
23.5
10.1
5.0
2.8

2.3
.6
14.0
6.0
2.9
6.7
4.7
1.3
2.6
20.7
21.8
8.9
5.3
2.3

1.7
.4
12.3
6.4
2.2
6.4
3.7
2.1
3.1
18.2
27.1
7.4
4.9
4.0

1.3
.4
7.2
11.9
3.2
12.4
5.3
2.3
7.7
9.7
20.8
8.1
4.7
4.9

INDUSTRY

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 2005
(In thousands)
Workers with alternative arrangements
Characteristic

Total
employed

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 ...............
16 to 19 years ...................................
20 to 24 years ...................................
25 to 34 years ...................................
35 to 44 years ...................................
45 to 54 years ...................................
55 to 64 years ...................................
65 years and over .............................

138,952
5,510
13,114
30,103
34,481
32,947
17,980
4,817

10,342
89
356
1,520
2,754
2,799
1,943
881

2,454
133
355
535
571
417
267
175

1,217
33
202
362
253
200
135
33

813
7
87
205
196
186
114
18

123,843
5,194
12,055
27,427
30,646
29,324
15,496
3,701

Men, 16 years and over ................
16 to 19 years ...................................
20 to 24 years ...................................
25 to 34 years ...................................
35 to 44 years ...................................
45 to 54 years ...................................
55 to 64 years ...................................
65 years and over .............................

73,946
2,579
6,928
16,624
18,523
17,193
9,485
2,615

6,696
32
194
1,006
1,824
1,764
1,287
589

1,241
82
200
299
252
209
108
91

574
24
107
185
120
71
52
16

561
7
61
138
140
143
70
3

64,673
2,389
6,331
14,950
16,130
15,003
7,954
1,917

Women, 16 years and over ..........
16 to 19 years ...................................
20 to 24 years ...................................
25 to 34 years ...................................
35 to 44 years ...................................
45 to 54 years ...................................
55 to 64 years ...................................
65 years and over .............................

65,006
2,931
6,186
13,480
15,958
15,754
8,495
2,202

3,647
57
162
514
930
1,035
656
292

1,212
52
155
236
319
208
158
84

643
9
95
177
133
129
83
17

252
–
27
67
57
43
44
15

59,170
2,805
5,724
12,477
14,516
14,322
7,542
1,785

115,043
14,688
6,083
18,062

9,169
583
370
951

2,097
212
64
385

840
276
63
255

637
121
43
133

102,052
13,471
5,538
16,202

113,798
25,154

7,732
2,611

1,370
1,084

979
238

695
119

102,889
20,954

RACE AND HISPANIC OR
LATINO ETHNICITY
White ................................................
Black or African American ................
Asian .................................................
Hispanic or Latino ethnicity ...............
FULL- OR PART-TIME STATUS
Full-time workers ..............................
Part-time workers .............................

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 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. In
addition, persons whose ethnicity is Hispanic or Latino may be of
any race and, therefore, are classified by ethnicity as well as by
race. Detail for other characteristics may not sum to totals due to
rounding. Dash represents zero.

Table 6. Employed workers with alternative and traditional work arrangements by selected characteristics,
February 2005
(Percent distribution)
Workers with alternative arrangements
Characteristic

Independent
contractors

On-call workers

Temporary help
agency workers

Workers
provided by
contract firms

Workers with
traditional
arrangements

100.0
.9
3.4
14.7
26.6
27.1
18.8
8.5

100.0
5.4
14.5
21.8
23.3
17.0
10.9
7.1

100.0
2.7
16.6
29.8
20.8
16.4
11.1
2.7

100.0
.9
10.7
25.2
24.1
22.8
14.0
2.3

100.0
4.2
9.7
22.1
24.7
23.7
12.5
3.0

64.7
.3
1.9
9.7
17.6
17.1
12.4
5.7

50.6
3.3
8.1
12.2
10.3
8.5
4.4
3.7

47.2
1.9
8.8
15.2
9.8
5.8
4.3
1.3

69.0
.9
7.5
17.0
17.2
17.6
8.6
.4

52.2
1.9
5.1
12.1
13.0
12.1
6.4
1.5

35.3
.5
1.6
5.0
9.0
10.0
6.3
2.8

49.4
2.1
6.3
9.6
13.0
8.5
6.5
3.4

52.8
.7
7.8
14.6
10.9
10.6
6.8
1.4

31.0
–
3.3
8.2
7.0
5.3
5.4
1.9

47.8
2.3
4.6
10.1
11.7
11.6
6.1
1.4

88.6
5.6
3.6
9.2

85.5
8.6
2.6
15.7

69.0
22.7
5.2
21.0

78.3
14.9
5.3
16.4

82.4
10.9
4.5
13.1

74.8
25.2

55.8
44.2

80.4
19.6

85.4
14.6

83.1
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. In addition, persons whose ethnicity is

Hispanic or Latino may be of any race and, therefore, are
classified by ethnicity as well as by race. Detail for other
characteristics may not sum to totals due to rounding. Dash
represents zero.

Table 7. Employed workers with alternative and traditional work arrangements by school enrollment and
educational attainment, February 2005
(Percent distribution)
Workers with alternative arrangements
Characteristic

Independent
contractors

On-call workers

Temporary help
agency workers

Workers
provided by
contract firms

Workers with
traditional
arrangements

SCHOOL ENROLLMENT
Total, 16 to 24 years (thousands) ...........
Percent ...................................................

445
100.0

488
100.0

235
100.0

95
100.0

17,249
100.0

26.6
73.4
10.5
30.9
22.3
9.7

41.4
58.6
14.9
26.4
13.1
4.4

4.7
95.3
21.6
30.9
25.1
17.6

13.0
87.0
38.8
30.4
12.5
5.2

44.1
55.9
8.9
24.2
14.4
8.5

Total, 25 to 64 years (thousands) ...........
Percent ...................................................

9,016
100.0

1,790
100.0

950
100.0

700
100.0

102,893
100.0

Less than a high school diploma ..............
High school graduates, no college 1 ...........
Some college or associate degree .............
Bachelor’s degree and higher 2 ..................

7.7
27.6
29.1
35.6

13.7
27.8
28.8
29.7

16.9
29.5
32.4
21.2

13.0
19.9
30.5
36.6

8.7
29.8
28.3
33.2

EDUCATIONAL ATTAINMENT

Includes persons with a high school diploma or equivalent.
Includes persons with a bachelor’s, master’s, professional,
and doctoral degrees.
NOTE: Workers with traditional arrangements are those who
2

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 2005
(Percent distribution)
Workers with alternative arrangements
Characteristic

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) .............................................
Percent ...........................................................................................

10,342
100.0

2,454
100.0

1,217
100.0

813
100.0

123,843
100.0

39.9
21.5
18.4

35.6
5.7
30.0

20.3
7.6
12.7

39.6
10.2
29.4

35.0
14.1
20.9

Service occupations ..........................................................................

13.7

22.1

15.6

26.2

15.5

20.5
17.1
3.4

12.6
4.4
8.2

26.9
2.1
24.8

7.2
2.5
4.7

26.6
11.7
14.9

19.7
.7
15.3
3.7

16.9
.5
12.5
3.9

7.1
.9
3.5
2.6

21.8
.2
19.8
1.7

9.4
.5
5.0
3.8

6.1
2.2
3.9

12.7
2.7
10.0

30.1
17.1
13.1

5.2
2.1
3.1

13.5
7.1
6.3

Total, 16 years and over (thousands) .............................................
Percent ...........................................................................................

10,342
100.0

2,454
100.0

1,217
100.0

813
100.0

123,843
100.0

2.6
.1
22.0
3.2
2.1
8.9
3.9
2.0
10.4
21.3
8.7
4.5
9.9
.3

.6
1.0
12.2
4.8
2.1
5.6
8.4
1.8
3.4
7.7
33.8
10.4
3.8
4.4

.2
.2
16.5
14.1
3.4
3.1
4.0
4.0
6.8
10.4
15.7
4.5
.3
16.6

1.2
.4
6.0
12.6
3.3
12.8
5.3
2.4
7.5
8.6
22.0
8.4
4.4
5.3

INDUSTRY

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

–
.5
3.4
28.4
5.4
2.1
3.1
1.8
4.1
31.9
11.1
1.8
2.9
2.8

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 2005
Percent with health insurance
coverage
Characteristic

Total employed
(thousands)
Total

Provided by
employer 1

Percent eligible for
employer-provided pension plan 2

Total

Included in
employer-provided pension plan

Contingent workers:
Estimate 1 .................................................
Estimate 2 .................................................
Estimate 3 .................................................
Noncontingent workers ...............................

2,504
3,177
5,705
133,247

51.8
52.5
59.1
79.4

9.4
7.9
18.1
52.1

9.2
8.3
18.6
49.6

4.6
4.1
12.4
44.7

With alternative arrangements:
Independent contractors ...........................
On-call workers .........................................
Temporary help agency workers ..............
Workers provided by contract firms ..........
With traditional arrangements .....................

10,342
2,454
1,217
813
123,843

69.3
66.9
39.7
80.2
80.0

(3)
25.7
8.3
48.9
56.0

2.6
33.2
8.9
42.6
52.9

1.9
27.8
3.8
33.5
47.7

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.

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 2005
(Percent distribution)
Contingent workers
Preference
Estimate 1

Estimate 2

Estimate 3

Total, 16 years and over (thousands) .....
Percent ...................................................

2,504
100.0

3,177
100.0

5,705
100.0

Prefer noncontingent employment ..............
Prefer contingent employment ....................
It depends ...................................................
Not available ...............................................

62.7
31.3
3.9
2.2

57.3
35.1
4.9
2.6

55.3
35.5
5.7
3.5

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 2005
(Percent distribution)
Preference

Independent contractors

Temporary help agency
workers

On-call workers

Total, 16 years and over (thousands) .....
Percent ...................................................

10,342
100.0

2,454
100.0

1,217
100.0

Prefer traditional arrangement ....................
Prefer indirect or alternative arrangement ..
It depends ...................................................
Not available ...............................................

9.1
82.3
5.2
3.4

44.6
46.1
6.8
2.5

56.2
32.1
6.5
5.2

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 2005
Percent distribution
Arrangement

Total
(thousands)

10,342
2,454
1,217
813
123,843

1 Not applicable. Excludes independent contractors and the
self-employed (incorporated and unincorporated).
NOTE: Noncontingent workers are those who do not fall into

Contingent workers
Estimate 1

Estimate 2

Estimate 3

(1)
10.4
30.4
6.8
1.2

3.4
10.6
37.8
9.8
1.4

3.4
24.6
60.7
19.5
2.9

Noncontingent
workers

96.6
75.4
39.3
80.5
97.1

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 wage and salary workers and those
with alternative work arrangements by sex, race, and Hispanic or Latino ethnicity, February 2005
Contingent workers

Workers with alternative arrangements

Characteristic
Estimate 1 Estimate 2 Estimate 3

Independent
contractors

On-call
workers

Temporary Workers
help
provided
agency by contract
workers
firms

FULL-TIME WORKERS
Total, 16 years and over .....................
Men .........................................................
Women ...................................................

$405
427
376

$411
440
383

$488
505
423

$716
794
462

$519
586
394

$414
405
424

$756
860
595

White ......................................................
Black or African American ......................
Asian .......................................................
Hispanic or Latino ethnicity .....................

413
344
(1)
335

421
375
(1)
331

498
387
619
370

731
474
889
603

561
303
(1)
417

418
375
(1)
311

772
(1)
(1)
513

Total, 16 years and over .....................
Men .........................................................
Women ...................................................

152
165
142

152
169
138

161
183
149

253
330
216

173
206
159

224
253
202

204
(1)
(1)

154
133
(1)
152

154
133
(1)
153

163
145
190
175

252
196
(1)
207

177
(1)
(1)
249

247
(1)
(1)
(1)

PART-TIME WORKERS

Data not shown where base is less than 100,000.
NOTE: Earnings data for contingent workers exclude the
incorporated self-employed and independent contractors. Data
for independent contractors include the incorporated and

(1)
(1)
–
(1)

unincorporated self-employed; these groups, however, are
excluded from the data for workers with other arrangements.
Full- or part-time status is determined by hours usually worked at
sole or primary job. Dash represents zero.

File Type	application/pdf
File Title	CONTINGENT AND ALTERNATIVE EMPLOYMENT ARRANGEMENTS, FEBRUARY 2005
File Modified	2005-07-26
File Created	2005-07-26