Archive · 22 Aug 2026
Economist Warns Disposable Jobs Impose Costs on US Workers
Some workers have jobs where employers do not promise steady work or career opportunities.
The article calls these jobs disposable jobs.
They include contractors, freelancers who work for companies, and marginal employees with jobs designed for high turnover.
A survey found that these workers make up more than one-third of the US workforce.
Employers may use them because they can cost less and make staffing easier to change.
Disposable workers generally earn less than regular workers.
Contractors and marginal workers are also less satisfied with their jobs, while some freelancers like choosing when and where to work.
The article says society can also face problems, including more hospital infections and workplace accidents.
More than one in three US workers are classified as disposable workers.
The three categories are contractors, organizational freelancers and marginal employees.
The survey estimates disposable workers include nearly 57 million people.
Employers often use these arrangements to reduce costs and increase workforce flexibility.
Research links contract work to higher hospital infection rates and industrial accidents.
- Who
- More than 57 million US workers, including contractors, organizational freelancers and marginal employees, are described in the research.
- What
- Labour economist Paul Osterman examines the growth, forms and public costs of disposable employment.
- When
- The nationally representative survey was conducted in late 2022; comparisons also discuss changes after the Affordable Care Act took full effect in 2014.
- Where
- The research concerns the United States and includes examples from workplaces such as residential buildings, offices, restaurants, hospitals and universities.
- Why
- Employers may use disposable jobs to save money, avoid some benefit costs, reduce training and management expenses, and maintain workforce flexibility.
Employer rationale
Worker and public concerns
Cost and flexibility
Employer rationale
Employers can use contractors, freelancers and part-time workers to reduce benefit, training and management costs and adjust staffing more easily.
Worker and public concerns
Workers may receive lower pay, fewer career opportunities and less job security, while taxpayers and the public may bear some resulting costs.
Part-time employment
Employer rationale
Employers interviewed in cited research described part-time work as a way to create workforce flexibility and manage turnover.
Worker and public concerns
The article says employers may increase part-time hiring to avoid health-insurance obligations that apply to employees working at least 30 hours per week.
Value of frontline workers
Employer rationale
A McKinsey report cited in the article asserted that 5% of employees deliver 95% of an organization’s value.
Worker and public concerns
Paul Osterman disputes that claim and says it reflects an attitude that treats many other workers as disposable.
- Estimated disposable workforce
- Just under 57 million of the 162 million people in the US workforce, or more than one in three.
- Contractors
- Staffing-firm employees working at client sites account for 13% of the workforce in the survey.
- Organizational freelancers
- Freelancers working for companies, organizations or agencies account for 5% of the workforce.
- Marginal workers
- Employees lacking career opportunities and holding high-turnover jobs account for 17% of the workforce.
- Survey and interviews
- The research included a nationally representative survey of more than 6,000 people and nearly 100 interviews.
- Part-time pay gap
- Part-time jobs pay nearly 20% less hourly than comparable full-time jobs; the gap rises by another 5% when benefits are included.
- Academic employment change
- Tenured or tenure-track faculty fell from 73% of college and university instructors in 1970 to 32% in 2021.