Sponsored Content – The gig economy has grown due to people voluntarily or involuntarily leaving traditional jobs where they work for one employer and receive company benefits. Being an Uber driver is a popular form of the gig economy, offering freedom and flexibility.

"Yeah, yeah. It helps me when I get tired or sick,” said Morsi Mansour, a part-time Uber driver in Miami. “I can stop working when I am busy with something else. I can just do, you know, stop working when I need to do something else, I can just do it.”

Freedom and Flexibility are among the reasons why people are turning to the gig economy and enjoying it. Other reasons why the gig economy is attractive, include a low barrier for entry, no boss to make your life miserable, good pay, and the independence that comes from being self-motivated.

“I can just come off the application and do what I want to do, and then I can open it again and start working again," Mansour said. "So that looks pretty good. It's a good thing about Uber,"

According to a 2018 Gallup poll, 36% of workers in the United States are doing gig work in some capacity. And that was three years before COVID-19 forced a record number of people into unemployment and searching for alternative means of income.

The Gallup poll also showed 64% of gig workers preferred their alternative work arrangement. There are a variety of gig workers, independence contracts, freelance workers, part-time assistance, multi-marketing specialist, delivery service drivers, and platform workers.

A study by Freelancing in America estimates that 57 million Americans freelance. The study also showed that 53% of Gen Z workers – ages 18-22 -- freelanced, the highest percentage in any age bracket since the study began in 2014.