Gen Z Is Changing The Workforce One Gig At A Time

What does it mean for the future of employment?

Workplaces everywhere are bracing as the first wave of Gen Zers head to work. While the vast majority of Generation Z are still teenagers, they’re already making waves and they’re doing it on their terms. A recent report from Upwork found that 46% of Gen Z workers are freelancers. And as more Gen Zers age into the workforce, that number is only projected to grow.

Why are so many Gen Zers eschewing traditional employment and diving into the gig economy? How can businesses attract and utilize their talents? And what does all of it mean for the future of employment?

Most people mark the beginning of Gen Z at around 1997. They have no memories of a pre-9/11 world, and iPhones debuted before they’d even hit middle school. Gen Zers are truly the children of a digital age.

It’s no wonder, then, that many are going against the traditional ideas of employment. Technology is one of the driving forces of the gig economy. People can now work anytime from nearly anywhere as work/life balance moves toward work/life integration. Various websites and apps exist for the sole purpose of helping people find gig work. So, is it any wonder that the children of the digital age are drawn to freelancing? Gig work is easy for them to find, access, and secure through the channels with which they’re most familiar. If businesses want to net this new source of talent, they’ll have to get online to do it.

When people think of gig work, they often think of Uber drivers and DoorDash delivery people. But gig jobs span a variety of industries and pay scales. Gig work tends to fall into two categories: skill-based and service-based. Currently, Gen Zers are mostly in service-based gigs: driving for ridesharing apps, delivering food, running errands for busy professionals. But the oldest Gen Zers are already out of college and starting careers as software developers, graphic designers, and more. These specialized skillsets are ideal for freelance and gig positions.

As Gen Z enters the workforce, more of them will enter the gig economy due to the sheer ease and speed with which they can find work. They will transition, as they get older, from service-based gigs to highly specialized, skills-based gigs. Some experts estimate that, in the future, one in three workers will freelance either part or full-time.

The easiest way to recruit Gen Z workers is to go where they are. Businesses are becoming increasingly savvy about how to utilize freelance talent. Hiring freelancers can be perfect for organizations and for the workers themselves.

On the business’s side of things, hiring gig talent is more cost efficient than hiring a full-time worker for the same job because they don’t receive the benefits that are paid out to hourly and salaried employees. They also don’t require extensive training or onboarding in order to be productive; a freelance software developer can be pointed directly at a project, given the product, and left to their own devices.

The freelancer, in return, gets all the things Gen Zers value: higher pay, flexible schedules, a healthy work-life balance, and the ability to be their own boss. And, as stated, finding work is simple on the technology Gen Zers have grown up with. Sites like Upwork, Fiverr, and Freelancer connect gig workers and companies at rates that match both of their needs. 

To accommodate this exponential growth in the freelance sector, companies are going to have to adapt their hiring policies—and HR technology has already advanced to meet this need. Hiring gig workers is new territory for some, but the latest technology enables hiring managers to seamlessly source, vet, and onboard new talent. It’s important to keep your organization’s goals and needs in mind. From text-based interviews to advanced people analytics, HR technology is leaping forward to meet the demands of the changing office.

Even as Gen Z overtakes the workplace, they’ll be doing business with the older generations—generations who are accustomed to traditional business/consumer interactions. In order to thrive, the gig economy must take the apprehensions of their customers into consideration; if Lyft or Airbnb loses the trust of its patrons, even the convenience of the service won’t be able to save it. Protect your business’s reputation and your resources by verifying the credentials of your gig workforce and conducting a comprehensive background check. While the future of employment may be radically different compared to the last decade, interviewing and screening are staples for a reason; the right background screening partner will meet your candidates where they are: on their mobile devices.

The gig economy continues to move forward, and Gen Z is leading the charge. If they want to thrive, businesses need to adapt.