11% Of Scots Have Had To Turn To Payday Lenders Due To Inconsistent Freelance Payments
18th June 2019
11% of Scots have had to turn to payday lenders due to inconsistent freelance payments.
A QUARTER of Scots can't afford big ticket payments such as home improvements and holidays due to inconsistent freelance payments.
ETZ Payments unveil exclusive research into how Scotland's gig economy struggles with inconsistent and late payments.
The gig economy is made up of 2 million people and, in 2016, was reported to contribute £119 billion to the UK economy. Freelance numbers have increased by 45% from just under 6.2 million to 8.9 million in 2013, making them the fastest growing group in the EU labour market.
Traditionally perceived as an arena for low-skilled workers ranging from courier drivers through to delivery and taxi drivers, freelance and flexible working hours have undoubtedly spiked as a result of an app economy employing millions across the nation. However, upon evaluating the true spectrum of the freelance job arena, new research into the from ETZ Payments shows that this is in fact a misconception.
Zero contract hours have become a lucrative life-choice of the middle-classes, brandished under sophisticated terms of consultants, project managers, data scientists and specialists, the world of freelance is far from the confines of low-skilled workers. Prominent sectors to support flexible employees include technology, finance and medicine - all requiring highly skilled, highly resourced professionals.
The study - launched today - across 2003 UK adults shows that 7.1 million workers have made the jump to working freelance from the traditional nine-to-five. Furthermore, research from Deliveroo found that 44% of the gig economy workforce have university degrees.
Scotland Key Stats
11% of Scots have had to turn to payday lenders or short-term finance solutions due to inconsistent payments from their freelance work.
Almost five million working Brits - 15% - have had to turn to payday lenders or short-term finance solutions due to inconsistent payments from their freelance work.
21% of Scots work between two to five jobs at one time to support their income
23% of British workers - 6.2 million people - work between two to five jobs at one time to support their income
25% of Scots can't afford big ticket commitments such as weddings, holidays, and home improvements due to the freelance payment structure
Eight million working Brits - 25% - can't afford big ticket commitments such as weddings, holidays, and home improvements due to the freelance payment structure
10% of Scots regularly miss bill payments due to not being paid on time
13% of Brits – 4 million working Brits - regularly miss bill payments due to not being paid on time
15% of Scots have considered leaving or have left freelance work due to inconsistent or late payments
4.5 million Brits – 14% of Brits - have considered leaving or have left freelance work due to inconsistent or late payments
47% of Scots would convert from 9-5 to working flexibly if they knew that they would get paid regularly
Nearly half of the UK workforce - 47% of British workers - would convert from 9-5 to working flexibly if they knew that they would get paid regularly
27% of Scots would rather have flexible working options than a pay rise
Over a third of Brits – 35% of British workers - would rather have flexible working options than a pay rise
25% of Scots believe that it's hard to budget because their monthly payments do not line up with their weekly bills and other outgoings
A third of working Brits – 9.6 million Brits - believe that it's hard to budget because their monthly payments do not line up with their weekly bills and other outgoings
There may be an array of opportunities for highly-skilled workers in the gig economy, but many are dissuaded from working in the arena due to inconsistent and irregular payments. This is unsurprising when, research from ETZ Payments, shows that 15% of gig economy workers have been pushed to payday loans as a result of late payments and that many are unable to afford significant payments such as weddings, holidays and home improvements.
The research shows that the gig economy is not limited to one socio-economic group by any means, but an eclectic mix of community and corporate professionals, with the one common denominator that blights their professional lives under the context of freelance payments.
Despite working in a range of industries, many flexible and freelance workers share the burden of chasing invoices and dealing with inconsistent payment systems. This means that many are missing payments and are being forced to turn to borrowing and short-term finance solutions even though they work in relatively well-paying jobs. It is clear why many freelance workers are becoming disenfranchised and dissuaded from working in a flexible capacity, which could be damaging for an economy that receives so much support from the gig economy.
Nick Woodward, CEO of ETZ Payments commented on the research: "It is startling to see the sheer number of middle-class British workers who are having to leave freelance work due to the ongoing stress of chasing invoices. It should be a norm that in today's workplace, with modern technology, that freelance workers should be able to complete a job and be paid for it on either the same or next day. Millions of workers are being held back in life because their employers are not paying them properly or on time. This has to change to help people have a more productive and happier work life balance and to support the British economy."
ETZ Payments
