The size and characteristics of the on-demand economy in the...
Transcript of The size and characteristics of the on-demand economy in the...
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Thesizeandcharacteristicsoftheon-demandeconomyintheUKand
Europe
UrsulaHuws,NeilH.SpencerandSimonJoyce
Therapidgrowthoftheon-demandeconomyseemstocontinueunabated.1Injustseven
years,Uberhasgonefromstart-uptoaglobalcompanyvaluedat$60billion.2Intheeight
yearssinceitwasfounded,Airbnbhasbecomearguablythelargesthotelierintheworld.3
Whilethesebignamebrandscontinuetomaketheheadlines,smalleron-demand
companiesproliferate,defyingattemptstokeeptrackofthem.Alongsidewhathaverapidly
becomewellknownnames,suchasUber,TaskRabbitandDeliveroo,recentadvertising
campaignsontheLondonUndergroundhavepromotedmyriadnewcompanies.ZipJetwill
collectyourdirtylaundryanddeliveritcleanedandironed.4DogBuddywillwalkyourdog,or
lookafteritwhileyouareawayfromhome,orjustbusy,andwillevensenddigitalphotosof
yourpetforyourpieceofmind–aswillitsrivalTailster,whichusesGPStrackingtokeep
youupdatedondog-walkingprogress,andalsoprovidescat-sittingservices.5Meanwhile,to
easethestressesofmodernlife,Urbanmassagewillsendcertificatedtherapiststoprovidea
rangeofrelaxationtreatmentsintheconvenienceofyourhomeoroffice.Whatismore,
togetherwithinformationabouthowcustomerscanaccess–andpayfor–theirservices,
thesewebsitesallprovidedetailsofhowwould-belaundry-drivers,dog-walkers,cat-sitters,
andmassage-therapistscanearnincomefromprovidingthoseservices.
Attemptstoestimatethesizeandcharacteristicsoftheon-demandeconomyarefraught1TheresearchpresentedherewasconductedbytheHertfordshireBusinessSchool,UniversityofHertfordshire,UK,inassociationwiththeFoundationforEuropeanProgressiveStudies(FEPS),andUNI-Europa.Forfurtherdetails,seeHuws,SpencerandJoyce(2016)(Forthcoming),CrowdworkinEurope:PreliminaryresultsfromasurveyintheUK,Sweden,Germany,AustriaandtheNetherlands.2Thisvaluationhasbeendisputed.SeeKaminska,I.(2016),'MythbustingUber'svaluation',FinancialTimes,13September.Availablehere:http://ftalphaville.ft.com/2016/09/13/2173631/mythbusting-ubers-valuation/?Authorised=false&_i_location=http%3A%2F%2Fftalphaville.ft.com%2F2016%2F09%2F13%2F2173631%2Fmythbusting-ubers-valuation%2F&_i_referer=&classification=conditional_registered&iab=barrier-app(Accessed1November2016).3Economist(2016),'NewYorkdeflatesAirbnb',TheEconomist,29October.Availablehere:http://www.economist.com/news/business/21709353-new-rules-may-temper-airbnb-new-york-its-future-still-looks-bright-new-york-deflates(Accessed1November2016).4https://www.zipjet.co.uk(Accessed1November2016).5https://uk.dogbuddy.com;https://www.tailster.com(Accessed1November2016).
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withdifficulties,however,whicharerootedinthesheervarietyofthisrapidlyexpanding
areaofeconomicactivity,aswellasitsnewness.Thiscombinationofnoveltyand
heterogeneitypresentsresearcherswithconsiderableempiricalandmethodological
challenges,aswellasproblemsofaconceptualnature.Inparticular,thereisasignificant
difficultyconcerninghowtheon-demandeconomyisdefined,6withdifferentdefinitions
leadingtodifferentestimatesofitssize–aswillbediscussedbelow.Despitethese
difficulties,though,progressispossible.
Theapproachadoptedbytheresearchpresentedbelowwastofocusononeparticular
aspectoftheon-demandeconomy;namely,crowdwork.Here,crowdworkisdefinedas
paidworkthatisorganisedbyanonlineplatform.Whileitisorganisedandmediatedonline,
crowdworkcanactuallybecarriedoutonlineoroffline;inthecrowdworker'shomeorin
thecustomer'shome;inaplaceofwork,suchasafactory,office,warehouse,orretail
outlet;orinpublicspacessuchasstreetsorparks.Crowdworkmayrequireonlineskills,or
traditionalcraftskills,orlittleskillatall.Crowdworkersmaybeclassedasemployees,self-
employed,orfreelanceworkers.Butthecommonfactoristhattheworktheydois
organisedbyanonlineplatform,andthatthecrowdworkerhopestogainanincomeby
doingit.Asothercontributionstothisvolumeshow,suchhopesarenotalwaysfulfilled.Yet,
therapidgrowthofthistypeofworkrequiresurgentinvestigationinordertogainan
understandingofwhoisdoingwhatwork,andwhy.
Consequently,thischapterpresentsfindingsfromthefirstattempttoestimatethescaleof
crowdworkinEurope.Thechapterbeginsbydiscussingtheconceptualandempirical
problemsalreadymentioned,followedbythesolutionsthatwereadoptedfortheresearch.
Subsequently,themainfindingsarepresented,andconclusionsdrawn.Asmustinevitably
bethecasewithexploratoryresearchinanewandrapidlychangingfield,someconclusions
remaintentative.Nevertheless,aswillbeshown,theresearchdoesgiveussomeuseful
insightsintotheextentandcharacteristicsofcrowdworkinEurope.
6Huws,U.(2016)AReviewontheFutureofWork:OnlineLabourExchanges,or‘Crowdsourcing’:ImplicationsforOccupationalSafetyandHealth,EuropeanAgencyforSafetyandHealthatWork,Bilbao.Availablehere:https://osha.europa.eu/en/tools-and-publications/publications/future-work-crowdsourcing(Accessed1November2016).
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Whatisknownaboutthescaleandcharacteristicsofcrowdwork:An
overviewofpreviousresearch
Todate,empiricalresearchoncrowdworkhasbeensomewhatlimited.Thissectiongivesan
overviewandofwhatliteratureisavailable.First,previousattemptstoestimatethescaleof
crowdworkarediscussed,followedbyanoutlineofpreviousresearchontypesofwork
done,andthedemographicsofcrowdworkersthemselves.
Extentofcrowdwork
Attemptstoestimatethesizeoftheon-demandeconomyfaceanumberofdifficulties,
whichmainlyderivefromissuesdiscussedabove;namely,thesignificantvarietyofcrowd
workandthelackofcleardefinitionsandacceptedterminology.Inthefaceofsuch
difficulties,researchershaveadoptedanumberofstrategies.Somehavetriedtomake
broadestimatesoftheeconomicvalueofcrowdwork.Othershaveconductedresearchon
particularplatforms.Anotherapproachhasbeentomakeuseofinformationprovidedby
theplatformsthemselves.Morerecently,someresearchershaveattemptedestimatesby
lookingatwiderpopulations.Despitethesevariedefforts,though,reliableestimatesforthe
overallsizeoftheon-demandeconomyremainelusive.
Previousattemptstoassesstheglobalmarketforcrowdworkconfirmitssizeandrapid
growthbutvaryconsiderablyintheirconclusions.Lookingatskilledonlinecreativeand
professionalwork,Elance/oDesk(nowUpwork)estimatedtotalmarketvaluewouldgrow
from$1.6billionin2013to$47billionby2020,7whileStaffingIndustryAnalystsestimated
thevalueofonlinecrowdworkwouldgrowfrom$1billionin2012to$5billionby2018.8
Morebroadly,Kaganeretal.estimatedglobalrevenueof‘humancloud’platformsgrewby
53%in2010and74%in2011.9Massolutionsestimatedin2012thatcrowdworkernumbers
wereincreasingbymorethan100%eachyear.10Itisfarfromclear,though,howsuch
estimatestranslateintonumbersofactualcrowdworkers.
7Hippler,K.(2014)‘Theonlineworkrevolution’,presentationtoDynamicsofVirtualWork(COSTActionIS1202)Meeting,UniversityofBucharest,28March,2014.8TheEconomist(2013)‘”Talentexchanges”onthewebarestartingtotransformtheworldofwork’,TheEconomistJune1.9Kaganer,E.,Carmel,E.,Hirschheim,R.andOlsen,T.(2013)‘ManagingtheHumanCloud’MITSloanManagementReview,Winter.10Massolutions(2012)CrowdsourcingIndustryreport:Enterprisecrowdsourcing:marketproviderandworkertrends,http://www.massolution.com/
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Inprinciple,itshouldbepossibletoarriveatafigureforthetotalnumberofcrowdworkers
bystartingfromthenumbersregisteredoneachplatform.Thisinformationisheldbythe
platforms,andmany–especiallythosemediatingonlinework,inapotentiallyglobalmarket
–displayfiguresforthenumberofworkersregistered.Forinstance,German-basedTwago
claimsover576,000'experts',including239,743programmers,85,622appdevelopers,
176,953developers,68,498writers,and57,081onlinemarketers.11However,theaccuracy
ofsuchnumbersisopentoquestion.Forinstance,thesefiguresarelikelytoincludepeople
whoareinactive,orregisteredonanumberofdifferentplatforms.Furthermore,thefigures
displayedbyplatformsoftendemonstratethelackofcleardefinitionsalreadynoted.For
instance,Freelancerclaimsmorethan20million'registeredusers'andover10million'total
jobsposted'.12Amongthe'registeredusers',however,nodistinctionismadebetween
workersandcustomers.Upworkissimilarlyvague,claiming'100,000+top-ratedweb
programmers','10,000+top-ratedmobiledevelopers','25,000+top-ratedwritersand
editors',and'15,000+top-ratedconsultants',amongmanyothers.13Notonlyarethese
numbersinexact,butitisnotclearwhetherorhowmanyindividualsareregisteredinmore
thanonecategory.
Forplatformshandlingthemosthighlyskilledandhighstatus,professionalwork,numbers
aremuchsmaller.Forinstance,intheUK,Axiomofferstheservicesof'over1500+
employeesacross3continents'providingarangeofbusinessservicesfrom'attorneys'and
'paralegals'to'managedservices'and'projectmanagers'.14Smallerstill,EdenMcCallum
offers500managementconsultants.15
Platformsthatmediateworkcarriedoutofflineseem,ifanything,evenlessconcernedabout
postingexactnumbersofregisteredworkers–perhapsbecausetheyservemorelocal
markets.Forinstance,whileRatedPeopleclaims50,000'qualitylocaltradespeople',16and
cleaningplatformHassle(nowpartofHelpling)claims'morethan2,500independent
11https://www.twago.com(Accessed14October2016).12http://www.freelancer.co.uk(Accessed14October2016).13https://www.upwork.com(Accessed14October2016).14http://www.axiomlaw.com(Accessed14October2016).15TheEconomist(2015)‘Freelanceworkersavailableatamoment’snoticewillreshapethenatureofcompaniesandthestructureofcareers’,TheEconomist,January3.16https://www.ratedpeople.com/trades/(Accessed15October2016).
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cleaners',17nonumberofregistered'Taskers'couldbefoundontheTaskrabbitwebsite.18
Uberclaims'morethan30,000'driversinLondon,19althoughthisnumberisnotmentioned
onitswebsite.Oncemore,aswithplatformsforonlinework,manyofflineworkplatforms
aremuchsmaller.Forinstance,TaskpandasprovideshouseholdservicesinfiveUKcities,
andclaims‘over1,500activePandaslookingtoearnsomeextramoneyintheseuncertain
times’.20Notsurprisingly,gaugingthetotalnumberofpeopleworkingviasuchplatformsis
farfromstraightforward.
Tocomplicatemattersfurther,thenumberofcrowdworkplatformsisverylarge.While
someareinternational,othersoperateonlyatlocal,regionalornationallevel.21Moreover,
systematicdocumentingofonlineworkplatformsappearslacking.In2014,StaffingIndustry
Analystsidentified'145onlinestaffingplatformbusinesses'globally,including33inChina,
butadded,'thereareactuallylikelytobealargernumberoftinyplatformbusinesseswe
havenotdetected'.22Giventherapidexpansionofthissectoroftheonlineeconomy,and
theproliferationofcrowdworkplatforms,thesenumbersseemratherlow;indeed,the
uncertaintyexpressedaboutthenumberofsmallerplatformsaccuratelyreflectsthe
difficultiesinvolvedinkeepingpacewithchangeinthisarea.Clearly,then,thelargenumber
ofplatforms,extremerangeofnumberscitedbydifferentplatforms,inexactfigures,and
lackofclarityastowhatthesenumbersreferto,combinetopresentmajordifficultiesfor
estimatingatotalnumberofcrowdworkersstartingfrominformationgivenbythe
platformsthemselves.
Analternativeapproachtoestimatingparticipationincrowdworkhasbeentoexamine
patternsofeconomicactivity,especiallyformsofemployment,acrossnationalpopulations.
Unfortunately,officialemploymentstatisticshavesofarnotkeptpacewiththespeedof17Archivedpressrelease.https://hassle.com/uk/press-releases/national-expansion(Accessed15October2016).18https://www.taskrabbit.co.uk(Accessed15October2016).19https://www.ft.com/content/2bedda7a-4e7e-11e6-88c5-db83e98a590a20http://www.taskpandas.com/about_us.php(Accessed15October2016).21Green,A.,deHoyos,M.,Barnes,S-A.,Baldauf,B.andBehle,H.(2014)'ExploratoryResearchonInternet-enabledWorkExchangesandEmployability.Analysisandsynthesisofqualitativeevidenceoncrowdsourcingforwork,fundingandvolunteers',inEuropeanCommissionJointResearchCentreInstituteforProspectiveTechnologicalStudies,JRCScientificandPolicyReports;Mandl,I.,(2014)EuropeanFoundationfortheImprovementofLiving&WorkingConditions,‘StatusquoandfirstfindingsoncrowdemploymentandICTbased,mobilework’,presentationtoDynamicsofVirtualWork(COSTActionIS1202)Meeting,UniversityofBucharest,28March,2014.22http://www2.staffingindustry.com/eng/Research/Research-Topics-Reports/North-America/2014-Online-Staffing-Platform-Landscape-Can-more-be-better(Accessed15October2016).
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developmentofnewformsofworkorganisationand,consequently,reliablenationalfigures
aregenerallylacking.ThesedifficultieswereexemplifiedrecentlybyadebateintheUSA
thatwassparkedbyofficialfiguresshowingnogrowthinself-employment.Sinceitis
commonlyassumedthatariseinself-employmentwouldaccompanyagrowthofcrowd
working,thesefiguresledtheWallStreetJournal23toquestionwidespreadperceptionsof
rapidgrowthintheonlineand‘gig’economy.Aswasquicklypointedout,however,other
setsofofficialstatisticstoldadifferentstory,withsomesupportingclaimsofgrowth.24
Indeed,theproblematicnatureofofficialstatisticsinthisareawassoonapparent.One
analystexpressedthefrustrationsofmany:'itseemsridiculousthatithasprovensodifficult
totrackandcounttheselabormarkettrends'.25Amajorunderlyingdifficulty,though,isthat
standardstatisticalcategoriesareoftenpoorlysuitedtogatheringdataonnewformsof
workorganisation;forinstance,because'increasingly...moreandmoreworkersexist
simultaneouslyinmultipleworkercategories'.26Furthermore,crowdworkhasgrown
unevenlyacrosstheUSA,sothatnewpatternsofwork,whichhavebecomerelatively
commonplaceincitiessuchasSanFranciscoandAustin,Texas,remainmuchlesscommonin
otherareas.27Untilofficialstatisticscatchupwiththesechangingemploymentpractices,
estimatesofthecrowdworkforcebasedonthesefigureswillcontinuetopresentproblems.
AnumberofrecentstudiesfromtheUShaveusedavarietyofothermethodstoinvestigate
newformsofwork,andhaveproduceddisparateresults.ResearchforTimemagazine,28
carriedoutbyPennSchoenBerland29inpartnershipwithBurson·Marsteller30andtheAspen
InstituteFutureofWorkInitiative,31investigatedbothworkersandusersintheon-demand
economy,definedbroadlytoinclude'ridesharing,accommodationsharing,taskservice,
shorttermcarrental,orfoodandgoodsdelivery’.32Resultsfromarepresentativeonline
23Zumbrun,J.andSussman,L.(2015),'Proofofa"GigEconomy"revolutionishardtofind',WallStreetJournal,July26,2015.Seealso,Zumbrun,J.(2015),'Anenduringmysteryofthe‘GigEconomy’:whyaresofewpeopleself-employed?'WallStreetJournal,October22,2015.24Hill,S.(2015),'HowBIGistheGIG(economy)',Medium,September9,2015.https://medium.com/the-wtf-economy/how-big-is-the-gig-economy-e674c7986a28#.q8j6v0zbf25Ibid.26Hill,S.(2015),'HowBIGistheGIG(economy)',Medium,September9,2015.https://medium.com/the-wtf-economy/how-big-is-the-gig-economy-e674c7986a28#.q8j6v0zbf27Hathaway,I.(2015),'Thegigeconomyisrealifyouknowwheretolook',HarvardBusinessReview,August13,2015.28Steinmetz,K.(2016)‘Exclusive:SeeHowBigtheGigEconomyReallyis’Time,January6.AccessedonSeptember3,2016from:http://time.com/4169532/sharing-economy-poll/29http://psbresearch.com(Accessed16October2016)30http://www.burson-marsteller.com/ondemand-survey/(Accessed16October2016)31https://www.aspeninstitute.org/search/future%20of%20work%20initiative(Accessed16October2016)32http://www.burson-marsteller.com/ondemand-survey/(Accessed16October2016)
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surveysuggestedthatthat42%ofUSadults'haveusedatleastoneon-demandeconomy
service',while22%'haveofferedoneon-demandeconomyservice’.33Byanymeasure,these
arelargenumbers.However,theauthorsdonotprovideabreakdownshowingwhat
proportionofrespondentsmightbeconsideredcrowdworkers,ratherthanprovidersof
someotheronlineservice.Similarlylargenumberswerearrivedatbyresearchersatthe
McKinseyGlobalInstitute,34whousedacombinationofofficialstatisticsandsurvey
methodstoestimatethesizeofthe'independentworkforce'intheUSandEU-15countries
at20-30percentoftheworkingagepopulation,orupto162millionpeople.Theverybroad
definitionof'independentwork'usedbythisstudy,whichincludedworkersonfixedterm
contractsofupto12months,andtemporaryworkagencystaff,alongsidethosewho'sell
goodsorrentoutassetssuchassparerooms',35inevitablyproducedaverylargeestimate.
Withinthisoverallfigure,theresearchersfoundthatsome15percentofindependent
workers,thusdefined,makeuseofan'onlinemarketplace',36andthataround4percentof
theworking-agepopulationhaveusedanonlineplatformtogainincome.37
Usingasomewhatnarrowerdefinitionof'onlineintermediatedwork',KatzandKreuger38
foundnotablylowerlevelsofparticipation,withonly‘about0.5percentofworkersindicate
thattheyareworkingthroughanonlineintermediary,suchasUberorTaskRabbit’.39Plainly,
thisisamuchsmallerfigurethanthestudiescitedabove.40Inpart,thisdifferencemust
reflectthenarrowerfocusofKatzandKrueger'sresearch,whichutilisedaversionofthe
discontinuedContingentWorkerSurvey(CWS)thatwaspreviouslyadministeredbytheUS
BureauofLaborStatistics,butdiscontinuedin2005.TheCWSwasdesignedtoinvestigate
33http://www.burson-marsteller.com/ondemand-survey/(Accessed16October2016)34McKinseyGlobalInstitute(2016)IndependentWork:Choice,NecessityandtheGigEconomy,October2016.Availablehere:http://www.mckinsey.com/global-themes/employment-and-growth/independent-work-choice-necessity-and-the-gig-economy(Accessed7October2016).35Ibid.,p.2.36Ibid.p.viii.37Ibid.p.12.38Katz.L.F.&Kreuger,A.B.(2016)TheRiseandNatureofAlternativeWorkArrangementsintheUnitedStates,1995-2015,PrincetonUniversity.Availablehere:https://krueger.princeton.edu/sites/default/files/akrueger/files/katz_krueger_cws_-_march_29_20165.pdf-2015.(Accessed3September2016).39Ibid.p.15.40KatzandKrueger'sfindingswerebroadlyinlinewithpreviousresearchbasedonGooglesearchesforonlineworkplatforms;see,Harris,S.andKrueger,A.(2015),'AproposalformodernizingLaborLawsforTwenty-First-Centurywork:the"IndependentWorker”,'TheHamiltonProject,DiscussionPaper2015-10,WashingtonDC,December2015.Availablehere:http://www.hamiltonproject.org/assets/files/modernizing_labor_laws_for_twenty_first_century_work_krueger_harris.pdf(Accessed16October2016).
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'theincidenceofalternativeworkarrangementsintheUSeconomy';41consequently,crowd
workersappearaspartofamuchlargergroup,includingtemporaryhelp,on-call,and
contractcompanyworkers,aswellasindependentcontractorsorfreelancers.Thesurvey
foundthat,altogether,theseformsofworkhadincreasedfrom10.1percentofthe
workforcein2005to17.2percentin2015.However,theCWSisdesignedtoidentify'each
individual'smainjob',42althoughKatzandKruegeralsoaskedabout'asecondaryjob'.Other
research,43though,suggeststhat,formostusersofonlineworkplatforms,crowdworkis
verymuchasupplementaryactivity;somethingperformedinadditiontoamainjob,which
canscarcelybeconsidered'ajob'atall.Consequently,framingcrowdworkintermsofmain
orsecondaryjobmaywellleadtorespondentsunderstatingparticipationrates.
Furthermore,theCWSidentifiedascrowdworkersonlythosewhorespondedthatthey
wereengagedin'directsellingtocustomers',whichseemsapotentiallyconfusing
descriptionofmuchcrowdwork;notleastbecausemanycrowdworkersmightwellsee
themselvesasworkingfortheplatformsratherthansellingdirectlytoacustomer.For
instance,itisclearfromanumberofcourtcasesthatmanyUberdriversconsider
themselvestobeworkingfortheplatform.44IndeedKatzandKrugerrecognisethedifficulty
ofusingthisdefinitionforisolatingplatform-mediatedwork.45Oncemore,though,theuse
ofproblematicdefinitionsmayhaveresultedintheCWSunder-estimatingparticipationin
crowdwork.
ThesupplementarynatureofmuchcrowdworkwasunderlinedbythefindingsofFarrelland
Greig,whoconductedabigdatastudyexaminingremittancesfromonlineplatformsintothe
bankaccountsofsome1millionUScustomersofJPMorganChasebank.46Thisprocedure
identifiedpatternsofpaymentsfrom30onlineplatforms,whichincludedboth'labour'
platforms,mediatingcrowdwork,and'capital'platforms,mediatingactivitiessuchas
rentingoutroomsorsellinggoodsonline.FarrellandGreigfoundthateachmonthalmost41Ibid.p.1.42KatzandKrueger(2016)p.3.43Eurofound(2015),NewFormsofEmployment,PublicationsOfficeoftheEuropeanUnion,Luxembourg.Availablehere:http://www.eurofound.europa.eu/publications/report/2015/working-conditions-labour-market/new-forms-of-employment(Accessed27September2016).44IntheUK,arecentEmploymentTribunalrulinghasagreedwithsuchaview:https://www.ft.com/content/a0bb02b2-9d0a-11e6-a6e4-8b8e77dd083a(Accessed1November2016).45KatzandKrueger(2016)p.16.46Farrell,D.&Greig,F.(2016)Paychecks,Paydays,andtheOnlinePlatformEconomy,NewYork:JPMorganChaseInstitute.Availablehere:https://www.jpmorganchase.com/corporate/institute/document/jpmc-institute-volatility-2-report.pdf(Accessed1November2016).
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onepercentofadultsearnedincomefromthe‘onlineplatformeconomy’,witharound0.4
percentearningincomefromalabourplatform.47Overthethreeyearsofthestudy,upto
September2015,0.9percentparticipatedinpaidworkviaanonlineplatformatleastonce.
Furthermore,participationincrowdworkinanygivenmonthwassignificantlyassociated
withfluctuationinearningsfromotheremployment,suggestingthatincomefromcrowd
workwasbeingsoughttomakeupforreducedincomefromothersources.Ofcourse,these
findingsexcludeanyincomefromplatformsotherthanthoseselectedforthisstudyand,
perhapsmoreimportantlyexcluderemittancesfromthirdpartypaymentsystems,suchas
PayPal.48Again,thismaycontributetounderestimatingactualparticipationincrowdwork.
Therangeofdifferentempiricalmethodsemployedbythesestudies,aswellastheir
somewhatdivergentfindingsunderlinethedifficultiesfacedbyresearchinthisarea.Itmust
beconcluded,therefore,thatwhilepreviousresearchsuggeststhatcrowdworkisa
significantandrapidlygrowingphenomenon,sofartherearenoreliableestimatesofits
actualextent.
Characteristicsofcrowdworkandcrowdworkers
Oneoftheprincipalcharacteristicsofcrowdworkistheextremevarietyoftasksthatare
mediatedviaonlineplatforms.Thus,AmazonMechanicalTurkmediatessimpleonlinetasks
andclickwork,whileUpworkdoesthesameformorecomplexonlinework.TaskRabbit
mediatesodd-jobtasksandotherofflinework,whileMyHammerperformsasimilarrolefor
theworkofmoreskilledtradespeople.Ubermediatesbetweendriversandpassengersto
providetaxi-likeservices,andDeliverooorganisesbicycleandmotor-scooterriderstodeliver
foodfromrestaurantstopeople'shomes.Thisvariety,however,hasnotbeenfullyreflected
inpreviousresearch,whichhastendedtoconcentrateonthoseengagedinonlinecrowd
work(seebelow).
Whileonlinecrowdworkiscertainlyvaried,onceofflinetasksareincluded,thevarietyof
workdoneincreasesdramatically.TheUKsiteMybuilder,49forexample,listsawiderangeof
‘trades’,includingbricklayers,demolitioncontractors,electricians,gasengineers,fencers,
groundworkers,roofers,stonemasons,treesurgeons,andwindowfitters.Taskrabbitoffers
'Taskers'whocanbehiredtoassemblefurniture,removegardenwaste,'repairandreplace47Ibid.p.21.48As,forinstance,isthepracticeofCrowdFlower.49http://www.mybuilder.com(Accessed1November2016).
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mosthouseholditems',orperform'heavylifting'.50Crowdworkcarriedoutinotherpeople's
homescanalsoincludepersonalserviceandcareroles,andavarietyofcleaningandother
domestictasks.Plainly,crowdworkmayalsoincludeavarietyofdrivinganddeliverytasks.
Oncemore,though,theseaspectsofcrowdworkhaveusuallybeeninvestigatedthrough
individualisedandjournalisticaccounts.51
Amongcharacteristicsthatarecommonacrossalltypesofcrowdwork,perhapsthemost
widespreadandconsistentlyreportedisitsextremeprecariousness.52Crowdworkersoften
facedifficultyinobtainingwork,inobtainingsufficientwork,andinreceivingpaymentfor
workdone.53Often,crowdworkersarerequiredtoworkatveryshortnotice,andfailureto
acceptajobmayresultinfinancialorotherpenalties.Furthermore,paymentmaybe
withheldbytheplatformifworkisnotconsideredacceptablebytheclient.54Adverseratings
fromcustomerscanreduceprospectsforfuturework,therateofpaymentreceived,oreven
leadtoexclusionfromtheplatformaltogether.Researchhasshownthatmanycrowd
workerscomplainofunjustwithholdingofpayment,whichisperceivedasaformof
‘scammingforfreework’.55Consequently,crowdworkisoftenassociatedwiththewider
spreadofprecariousworkandincomeinsecurity.56
50https://www.taskrabbit.co.uk/m/featured(Accessed16March2016)51Forinstance:Bhattacharya,S.(2015)'TaskRabbit:Howanappcanrelieveyouofallyourchores',DailyTelegraph,5December.Availablehere:http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/technology-companies/12026750/TaskRabbit-How-an-app-can-relieve-you-of-all-your-chores.html(Accessed1November2016);Hayns,J.(2016)'UberEatsWorkersonStrikeandHungryforFairPay',NovaraMedia,27August.Availablehere:http://novaramedia.com/2016/08/27/ubereats-workers-on-strike-and-hungry-for-fair-pay/?utm_content=buffer45841&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_campaign=buffer(Accessed1November2016);52Foradiscussionofthelinkbetweenprecariousnessandpsychosocialriskfactors,seeEurofound(2009)RiseinPsychosocialriskfactorsintheWorkplace.Dublin:EuropeanFoundationfortheImprovementofLivingandWorkingConditions.Availableat:http://kernelmag.dailydot.com/features/report/4732/my-gruelling-day-as-an-amazon-mechanical-turk/(Accessed1November2016).53Berg,J.(2016)Incomesecurityintheon-demandeconomy:Findingsandpolicylessonsfromasurveyofcrowdworkers,InternationalLabourOffice,Geneva.Availablehere:http://www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public/---ed_protect/---protrav/---travail/documents/publication/wcms_479693.pdf(Accessed1November2016);Eurofound(2015).54ManyaccountsofAmazonMechanicalTurkdescribelargenumbersofrejections.Seeforinstance:http://www.cnet.com/news/amazons-mechanical-turk-lets-you-make-sort-of/(Accessed1November2016);http://kernelmag.dailydot.com/features/report/4732/my-gruelling-day-as-an-amazon-mechanical-turk/55Seeforinstance,complaintsbyElanceavailablehere:http://www.consumeraffairs.com/employment/elance.html(Accessed1November2016).56SeePennycook,M.,Cory,G.&Alakeson,V.(2013)AMatterofTime:Theriseofzero-hourcontracts,ResolutionFoundation,availablehere:http://www.resolutionfoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/A_Matter_of_Time_-_The_rise_of_zero-hours_contracts_final_1.pdf(Accessed1November2016).
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Turningtothecharacteristicsofcrowdworkersthemselves,again,previousresearchhas
tendedtofocusonthoseengagedinonlinework,viaplatformssuchasAmazonMechanical
Turk(AMT)andCrowdFlower.Onlinecrowdworkersareparticularlyamenabletostudyby
thestraightforwardmethodofpostinganonlinesurveyasapaidtaskontheplatformitself.
ResearchcarriedoutinthiswayhasfoundthatAMTworkersintheUStendtobeyoung
(48%borninthe1980s),collegeeducated(over90%),and'internet-literate’.57Inother
respects,US'Turkers'arebroadlyrepresentativeoftheUSpopulation.58Forinstance,inthe
US,AMTworkershaveanalmost50-50gendersplit.59Bycontrast,AMTworkersinIndia,
andelsewhereonotherplatforms,arearound70percentaremale.60Furthermore,Indian
AMTworkersalsotendtobeslightlyyoungerthantheirUScounterparts.61
OtherresearchhasemphasisedthediversityofAMTworkers.LillyIranireported,‘[AMT]
workersIhavemetincludelaid-offteachers,mobility-impairedprofessionals,military
retirees,agoraphobicwriters,undersupportedcollegestudents,stay-at-homeparentsand
evenMalaysianprogrammers-in-training’.62Asignificantproportionofhome-based,online
crowdworkersdothistypeofworkbecausetheyeitherprefertoworkathomeorcannot
workoutsidethehome,whetherduetopoorhealth,disability,orcaringresponsibilities.63
FormanyUScrowdworkers,payreceivedviaanonlineplatformisawayofsupplementing
otherearnings.64Indeed,researchersattheMcKinseyGlobalInstitutereportthatsome30
percentofthe'independentworkforce'fallintocategoriestheyterm'reluctants'or
'financiallystrapped',whoparticipateinformsofinsecureworkduetofinancialpressures.65
Otherevidencetendstosupporttheseaccounts.Forinstancejournalisticaccounts66
57Berg(2016);Ipierotis,P.(2010)DemographicsofMechanicalTurk,WorkingPaper,DepartmentofInformation,Operation,andManagementSciencesLeonardN.SternSchoolofBusinessNewYorkUniversity.Availablehere:http://www.ipeirotis.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/CeDER-10-01.pdf(Accessed1November2016).58Zentz,D.(2015)‘IntellectualPiecework’,TheChronicleofHigherEducation,February16.59AMTrespondents52%male,accordingtoEurofound(2016),p.5.60Ibid.Seealso,Kittur,A.,Nickerson,J.V.,Bernstein,M.S.,Gerber,E.M..Shaw,A.,Zimmerman,J.Lease,M.andHorton,J.J.(2013)‘TheFutureofCrowdWork’,CSCW,February23-27.61Kittur,A.,Nickerson,J.V.,Bernstein,M.S.,Gerber,E.M..Shaw,A.,Zimmerman,J.Lease,M.andHorton,J.J.(2013)‘TheFutureofCrowdWork’,CSCW,February23-27.62Irani,L.(2015)’DifferenceandDependenceamongDigitalWorkers’,SouthAtlanticQuarterly,January,p.231.63Berg(2016).64Ibid..Seealso,FarrellandGreig(2016).65McKinseyGlobalInstitute(2016).66Forinstance,DePillis,L.(2014)‘AttheUberforhomecleaning,workerspayapriceforconvenience’,WashingtonPost,September2014;Shontell,A.(2011),'Mynightmareexperience
12
documentdifficultiesinobtainingwork,extremelylowpay,haphazardorganisational
arrangements,absenceofguarantees,andlackofinsurance,aswellasthediversityof
crowdworkers.
PreviousresearchinEuropeismorelimitedstill.Amongasmallnumberofcasestudies,one
lookedatfreelanceplatformPeople-per-hour67andfoundthatmostofitsusers(63.5%)
werebasedintheUKwiththeremainderspreadwidelyacrosstheglobe.AswiththeUS
studies,userstendedtobeyoung,withanevengendersplit.68Morerecently,Eurofound
conductedaseriesofcasestudiesacrossEurope,whichconfirmedthepicturefound
elsewhereofarelativelyyoung,relativelywell-educated,fairlyevenlygenderbalanced
crowdworkforce,forwhomcrowdworkisusually'aspare-timejobalongsideanotherjob,
educationorcareresponsibilities'.69Beyondtheseinitial,exploratorystudies,however,
detailedevidenceinEuropeisscarce–inparticular,thereisalackofsurveyevidence.
Researchdesignandmethods
Astheabovereviewofpreviousliteratureshows,thereisanotablelackofresearch
investigatingbasicfeaturesofcrowdworkinEurope.Theresearchpresentedbelowwas
thereforedesignedtoinvestigatethenumbersofpeopleengagedincrowdwork,their
demographiccharacteristics,whattypesofworktheyareengagedin,andtheextentto
whichcrowdworkformstheirmainsourceofincome.
asaTaskRabbitdrone',BusinessInsider,7December2011,http://www.businessinsider.com/confessions-of-a-task-rabbit-2011-12?IR=T;Kessler,S.(2014),'Pixelanddimed',FastCompany,18March2014:http://www.fastcompany.com/3027355/pixel-and-dimed-on-not-getting-by-in-the-gig-economy;Rich,L.J.(2013),'Sohowmuchmoneycanyoumakecrowdworking?',BBCNews,7September2013:http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-23959890.67On22/02/2015thePeople-per-hourwebsiteclaimed40,000‘curatedfreelances’.Morerecently,however,nofigureforthenumberofregisteredworkerscouldbefound–perhapspartofatrendawayfromwebsiteusingsuchfiguresaspartoftheirmarketingefforts.Accessed17October,2016.68Green,A.deHoyos,M.,Barnes,S-A,Baldauf,B.andBehle,H.(2013)CrowdemployCrowdsourcingCaseStudies:anEmpiricalInvestigationintotheImpactofCrowdsourcingonEmployability,EuropeanCommissionJointResearchCentreInstituteforProspectiveTechnologicalStudies.69Eurofound(2016),p.113.
13
Surveydesign
Theprincipaldifficultiesindesigningasurveytoinvestigatecrowdworkstemfromthesame
varietyofworkundertakenandlackofcommonlyaccepteddefinitionsandterminologythat
havealreadybeendiscussed.Inparticular,terminologicaluncertaintymeansthatany
attempttoaskdirectquestions,suchas'Areyouacrowdworker?',wouldbeverylikelyto
causeuncertaintyandconfusionamongrespondents,leadingtoquestionableorunreliable
results.Therefore,asurveywasdesignedthatwouldcaptureamuchwiderrangeofonline
economicactivity,includingactivitieswithwhichcrowdworkmightbeconfused–suchas
buyingandsellinggoodsorpersonalpossessionsonline,rentingoutaccommodation,online
job-searches,orusingemployers'specialistappsforlogginghoursorworkdone.Subsequent
questionswerethenasked,tofilteroutnon-crowdworkactivities.70Oncecrowdworkhad
beenisolatedinthisway,furtherquestionswereaskedaboutissuessuchasthetypesof
workundertaken,frequencyofcrowdwork,andproportionofearningsderivedfromcrowd
work.Bythismethod,itwouldbepossibletoestimateboththeextentofcrowdworking
amongsurveyrespondents,aswellasidentifyinganumberofimportantcharacteristicsof
crowdworkandcrowdworkers.
Sampling
Becauseofbudgetaryrestrictions,itwasnotpossibletoconductlarge-scaleofflinesurveys.
Therefore,itwasdecidedtoconductthesurveyonline,viaanexistingomnibussurveythat
isrepresentativeofthegeneralpopulation;inthiscase,theregulariOmnibussurveyrunby
marketresearchcompanyIPSOS-Mori.71ThesurveywasconductedinitiallyintheUK,and
subsequentlyinSweden,Germany,Austria,andtheNetherlands.Ineachcountry,theIPSOS-
MoriiOmnibussurveysamplewasstratifiedtomatchthenationalpopulationonanumber
ofdemographicdimensions,suchasage,gender,regionandworkingstatus,withtheresults
weightedtoreflectknowndifferencesbetweenonlineandofflinepopulations.
Twofurtherconsiderationsarisefromthissamplingmethod.First,forreasonsrelatedto
marketresearchpracticesineachcountry,stratificationvariedslightlybetweenthesurveys
(seeTable1).Forinstance,theagerangesofthesamplesisnotconsistent.72Secondly,due
70ThissurveydesigndrewontheextensiveexperienceofPrincipalResearcher,ProfessorUrsulaHuws,whohasextensiveexperienceofpioneeringresearchonotheremergingtechnology-relatedformsofwork,suchasteleworking,telemediatedmobileworkingandoffshoreoutsourcing.71IPSOS-Moriresearchcomplieswiththeethicsstandards[???]ofESOMAR[websitedetails].72Inthepresentationoffindingssetoutbelow,samplingissuesareclearlynotedandexplained.
14
tothelackofpreviousresearchinthisarea,itwasnotpossibletocontrolthesamplesfor
participationinonlineactivity.Intheabsenceofrobustcontrols,extrapolationfromthe
surveyfindingstothepopulationofeachcountryasawholeissubjecttotheusualcautions
relatingtothegeneralisationofresultsfromonlinesurveys.73Consequently,careisneeded
whenattemptingtodrawconclusionsabouttheoverallextentofcrowdwork.74
Table1Samplesandstratification
Researchfindings
Theextentofcrowdwork
Thissectionpresentsfindingsrelatedtothelevelofparticipationincrowdwork,andthe
relationshipofcrowdworktootherformsofpaidemployment.Thesurveysprovided
73Williams,C.C.andSchneider,F.(2016),MeasuringtheGlobalShadowEconomy:ThePrevalenceofInformalWorkandLabour,EdwardElgar,Cheltenham,pp.39-56.74Atthetimeofwriting,plansarebeingdevelopedtoconductofflineresearchinordertocalibratetheonlinefindingsmoreprecisely,therebypermittingextrapolation.Inthemeantime,findingspresentedbelowcanbetreatedasabroadlyrepresentativesampleofcrowdworkersineachcountry;asample,moreover,whichisindependentofanyparticularonlineplatform.
Country Sample
size
Surveydates Age
range
Stratification
UK 2,238 22-26Jan
2016
16-75 Age,gender,region,socialgrade,
workingstatus
Sweden 2,146 26Feb-7Mar
2016
16-65 Age,gender,region,workingstatus
Germany 2,180 1-4April
2016
16-70 Age,gender,region,populationdensity
ofrespondentsettlement,chiefincome
earnerofhousehold,householdsize,
workingstatus
Austria 1,969 1-4April
2016
18-65 Age,gender,region,workingstatus
Netherlands 2,125 22-27April
2016
16-70 Age,gender,economicactivity,region,
workingstatus
15
backgroundinformationaboutonlineeconomicactivityaswellasmoredetailedevidence
aboutparticipationincrowdwork.AsFigure1shows,onlineeconomicactivitywas
commonplaceamongthesamplessurveyed.Inparticular,thesellingofpersonalpossessions
onwebsitessuchaseBaywasespeciallywidespread,withmorethanhalfofthesamplein
eachcountrytellingusthattheyhaddonethisatsometimeinthepast.Notethatthese
figuresrefertopeoplewhotoldusthattheyhadengagedintheseformsofonlineeconomic
activityatanytimeinthepast;thatis,thesefiguresdonotconveyfrequency.
Participationincrowdwork–thatis,paidworkmediatedviaanonlineplatform–wasless
commonthanmostotherformsofonlineeconomicactivity,butwasneverthelessclearly
presentinallofthesamplessurveyed(seeFigure1).Infourofthecountries(UK,Sweden,
Germany,Netherlands),participationrateswereremarkablysimilar,rangingbetween9and
12percent,withAustriaregisteringahigherrate,at19percent.Thesefigurestranslatetoa
sampleofapproximately200-300crowdworkersineachcountry,withtheexceptionof
Austria,wherethenumberofcrowdworkerswassome374.
[Figure1abouthere.]
Again,theseheadlinefiguresrefertorespondentswhosaidthattheyhadgainedincome
fromcrowdworkatanytimeinthepast,nottheproportionofthesamplewhofrequently
engagedincrowdwork.AsFigure2shows,muchsmallerproportionsofeachsampletoldus
thattheyparticipatedincrowdworkmoreoften.Thatis,ourfindingsshowthatfrequent
crowdworkwasconsiderablylesscommonthatoccasionalcrowdworkinthesesamples.
Thus,intheUK,Sweden,GermanyandtheNetherlands,some5-6percentofthesample
reportedthattheyengagedinpaidcrowdworkatleastonceeachweek,and9percentin
Austria;thatis,roughlyhalfthenumberswhohaddonecrowdworkatanytimepreviously.
Interestingly,asFigure2alsoshows,thenumbersofpeopletellingusthattheyengagedin
crowdworkatleastoncepermonthwereonlymarginallyhigherthanthenumbersaying
thattheyperformedcrowdworkatleastweekly.Thissuggeststheemergenceofasmallbut
significantgroupineachsamplewhoareengagedincrowdworkonafairlyregularbasis–in
additiontoanothergroupwhohavedonecrowdworkmuchmoreintermittently.
[Figure2abouthere.]
16
Thus,whenconsideringtheextentofcrowdwork,itisimportanttounderstandthe
significantvariationinfrequencyofparticipation.Unlikemanymoretraditionalformsof
employment,crowdworkis,toaconsiderabledegree,irregularwork.Itisnoticeablethat
Austriaconsistentlyregisteredhigherlevelsofparticipationincrowdworkthandidthe
samplesinothercountries.Thismayinpartbeduetosamplingissues(asdiscussedabove),
oritmaybeduetoagreaterwillingnesstoexperimentwithcrowdworkamongtheAustrian
onlinepopulation(seebelowforfurtherevidenceconcerningAustriancrowdworking).
Theexistenceofagroupofoccasionalorveryoccasionalcrowdworkers,inadditiontoa
smallernumberoffrequentcrowdworkers,suggeststhatmanyareexperimentingwith
crowdworkinsomeway.Thiswidergroupmaybetermed"platformtourists"orperhaps
even"platform-curious".Theidentificationofthispatternofinfrequent,experimentalcrowd
worksuggeststheemergenceofconcertedonlinestrategiesforsecuringpaidworkamong
sectionsofthewiderworkforce.Theseonlinework-searchstrategiesappeartoincludethe
investigationofcrowdworkalongsideotheronlineapproaches.
Thisinterpretationissupportedbytwootherfindingsfromthesurveys.First,asFigure3
shows,greaternumbersofrespondentsreportedhavinglookedforworkviaonline
platformsthanhadactuallyreceivedincomefromsuchsources.Again,thesefigures
representthetotalnumberofrespondentswhoindicatedthattheyhadlookedforsuch
workatanytimeinthepast.Respondentswerealsoaskedwhattypesofcrowdworkthey
hadlookedfor.Resultsshowedaclearpreferenceforonlinecrowdworkthatcouldbedone
fromhome,followedbycrowdworkoutsidethehome,withdrivingusuallytheleast
commonlysoughttypeofcrowdwork.Secondly,asshowninFigure4,inallcountries,crowd
workerswereconsiderablymorelikelytobeusingjobsearchwebsites,lookingformore
traditionalformsofregularemployment,thanwerenon-crowdworkers.Together,these
findingssuggesttheemergenceofintegratedonlinestrategiesforsearchingforpaidwork.It
islessclearfromthesurveyfindingswhysuchstrategiesareemerging,butitmayberelated
todifficultiesinfindingssuitablepaidemploymentelsewhere.
[Figure3abouthere.]
[Figure4abouthere.]
Findingsfromthepresentresearchalsosupporttheview,discussedpreviously,thatcrowd
17
workisusuallydonealongsideotherformsofemployment.Thefindingsarestriking.As
Figure5shows,Inallfivecountriesthegreatmajorityofcrowdworkershadother
employmentaswell.Indeed,inallcountriessurveyed,theproportionofrespondentstelling
usthatthathadreceivedandincomefromcrowdwork,andwhoalsohadanotherjob,was
higherthantheproportionhavingsomeformofemploymentinthesampleasawhole.75
Whilethisfindingwascommonacrossallcountriessurveyed,theassociationbetween
crowdandincreasedlikelihoodtobeinotheremploymentwasparticularlystrongintheUK
andGermany,and,toalesserextent,alsointheNetherlands.
[Figure5abouthere.]
Characteristicsofcrowdwork
Asnotedpreviously,onlineplatformsorganiseandmediateaverywiderangeofdifferent
typesofwork.Consequently,thepresentresearchwasconcernedtoidentifythetypesof
crowdworkbeingcarriedout,andtodeterminewhichcrowdworkerswereperforming
whichtypesoftasks.Thequestionnairewasdesignedtoillicitthisinformation.Respondents
whotoldusthattheyhadengagedincrowdworkwereaskedwhattypesofpaidworkthey
haddone,andwereallowedtoidentifyasmanytypesasapplied,fromthefollowinglist:
• Taxiserviceorotherdrivingworkthatyoudoinperson.
• Occasional,unscheduledworkinotherpeople’shomes(e.g.plumbing,repairof
appliances,electricalwork,carpentry)
• Regular,scheduled,workinsomebodyelse’shome(e.g.dailyorweeklycleaning,
babysitting,gardening).
• Personalservicework(e.g.hairdressing,massage,manicure)
• Runningerrandsoroffice-typeworkthatyoudoonthecustomer’spremises
• Officework,shorttasksor‘clickwork’thatyoudoonyourcomputerorotheronline
device.
• CreativeorITworkthatyoudoonyourcomputerorotheronlinedevice(e.g.design,
editing,softwaredevelopmentortranslation,etc.)
• Professionalwork(e.g.legalservices,accounting)
75Thesedifferencewerenotstatisticallysignificantinallcases,however.Forfurtherdetails,seeHuws,Spencer&Joyce(2016).
18
Theresultswererevealing.AsFigure6clearlyshows,crowdworkersinallfivecountries
surveyedtoldusthattheywereengagedinawidevarietyofdifferenttypesofwork.Some
patternsdoemerge,however.Inparticular,inallcountries,onlineshorttasksandclickwork
wasthemostcommonlyperformedtypeofcrowdwork,anddrivingtheleastcommon.But
thestrongoverallimpressionisofpeopledoingarealvarietyoftasks–onlineandoffline,in
theirownhomeaswellaselsewhere.Thevarietyofdifferenttypesofcrowdworkdonealso
reflectsthefindings,reportedabove,aboutthevarietyofcrowdworksought.Perhapsit
shouldbelesssurprisinghowmanytypesofcrowdworkpeoplereportedactuallydoing,
whenweconsiderthenumberofdifferenttypesofworktheytoldustheyhadlookedfor.
[Figure6abouthere.]
Genderandcrowdwork
Oneofthemoststrikingfeaturesofthecrowdworkforceisitssurprisinglyevengender
balance,asshowninFigure7.Amongthosewhohaveeverearnedanincomefromcrowd
work,womenmakeupthemajorityintheUK,andareatleast38percentofthecrowd
workforceintheothercountriessurveyed.Theseproportionsremainstableevenathigher
frequenciesofcrowdwork.
[Figure7abouthere.]
Giventhewiderangeofdifferenttypesofworkthatcrowdworkersperform,asoutlined
above,wewereinterestedtoidentifyanygenderedpatternswithinthesefindings.Thatis,
weremenandwomendoingdifferenttypesofcrowdwork?However,itwasdifficultto
detectanysuchpatterns.Inlargepart,thisisbecauseindividualcrowdworkerswere
engagedinsuchavarietyofdifferenttypesofwork.Toalesserextent,though,thisfinding
mayalsoreflecttherelativebreadthofsomeofthecategoriesused.Forinstance,'Regular,
scheduled,workinsomebodyelse’shome'couldincludebothcleaningandgardening,which
mightusuallybeconsideredpredominantlyfemaleandmaleoccupations,respectively;but
suchdifferenceswouldnotshowupinourresults.Whateverthespecificreasons,though,
nocleargenderdifferencesshowedupinthetypesofcrowdworkdone.
Therewere,though,differencesbetweentheresponsesofmenandwomenconcerningthe
rangeofdifferenttypesofcrowdworkthattheydid.AsFigure8shows,amongthose
19
respondentswhohadengagedincrowdworkatanyprevioustime,onaverage,mentoldus
theydidmoretypesofworkthandidwomen;aroundfivetypesofworkformeninall
countriesexcepttheNetherlands,comparedwithfewerthanfourtypesofworkperformed
bywomen(exceptinGermany).Amongmorefrequentcrowdworkers,thegendergapin
thevarietyofworkdonenarrowed,thoughmencontinuedtoperformmarginallymore
typesonaverage.
[Figure8abouthere.]
Itwasalsofoundthatincreasingfrequencyofcrowdworkwasassociatedwithagreater
diversityoftaskscarriedout;averagesamongfrequentcrowdworkersrosetoaroundfiveor
sixtypes.Itwasnotclearfromthefindings,though,whythisshouldbethecase.Possibly,it
wasduetogreaterdesperationamongsomecrowdworkerstofindsomemeansofgaininga
viableincome.Alternatively,itcouldrepresenthigherlevelsofcuriosityand
experimentationwithnewtypesofearningopportunities.Mostlikelyitresultedfroma
combinationoffactors.Whateverthecauses,however,thesefindingssupportthe
conjecture,outlinedabove,thatacharacteristicstrategyforonlinework-searchingis
emerging,whichfavoursinvestigationofabroadrangeofpotentialearningopportunities.
Furthersupportforthisviewcomesfromsurveyfindingsontherangeoftypesofwork
sought–asopposedtothetypesofworkactuallydone.Respondentswhoindicatedthat
theyhadatsometimelookedforworkviaanonlineplatformwereaskedwhattypesof
worktheyhadlookedfor.Respondentsweregiventhreebroadoptionstochoosefrom;
workcarriedoutfromhome,workcarriedoutoutsidethehome,anddrivingwork.
Responsestothisquestionclusteredaroundtwo;thatis,would-becrowdworkerstendedto
searchforworkintwoofthethreebroadcategories,withaveragesformenonlymarginally
higherthanthoseforwomen.Althoughthereweresomevariationsbetweencountries,76
oncemore,genderdifferenceswererelativelylimitedcomparedwiththedegreeoflabour
marketsegmentationinothersectorsofemployment.Thus,forinstance,intheUKwomen
madeup49percentofthosewhotoldustheyhadsoughtdrivingworkviaanonline
platform.ThisfigurecontrastsmarkedlywithotherdatafordrivingemploymentintheUK.
In2016,womenaccountedforonly47,000outof351,000transportdrivers.Only10,000out
of232,000taxidriverswerewomen;andofthose,just6,000wereself-employed,outof
76Fordetails,seeHuws,SpencerandJoyce(2016).
20
184,000.77Towhatextentthesurveyfindingsrepresentagenuineopportunityforwomento
enteroccupationsfromwhichtheyhavepreviouslybeenexcluded,orindicateaspiration
morethanchangingreality,remainsunclear.
Ageofcrowdworkers
Asdiscussedpreviously,researchsuggeststhatcrowdworkerstendtoberelativelyyounger
thantheoverallpopulation.Thisconclusionwasstronglysupportedbyevidencefromthe
presentstudy.Figure9showstheageprofilesofthesampleineachofthefivecountries
surveyed.AsFigure9illustrates,theageprofilesofthesamplesvaried,duemainlyto
differencesinage-range–withdifferencesintheoldestagegroupparticularlyclear(see
abovefordetails).Nevertheless,despitethesedifferences,aclearpatternemergedacross
allthecountriessurveyed;namely,thetendencyfortheageprofiletobecomeyoungerwith
increasingfrequencyofcrowdwork.Thus,asFigure10shows,amongrespondentswhohad
donecrowdworkatanytime,representationofthe'Upto24'agebandincreased,asdid
the25-34agegroup.Bycontrast,representationoftheoldestgroups(45-55and55+)
decreasedinallcountries(thoughonlymarginallyintheNetherlands).Asthefrequencyof
crowdworkincreasedtoweekly,sotheageprofileshiftedfurthertowardstheyounger
groups.AsFigure11shows,amongweeklycrowdworkers,under-35year-oldsmadeup
morethanhalfthesampleineverycountry,withtheexceptionoftheNetherlands.There
was,then,amarkedtendencyforcrowdworkerstobeyoungerthantheageprofileofthe
sampleasawholeineachofthecountriessurveyed.
[Figure9abouthere.]
[Figure10abouthere.]
[Figure11abouthere.]
Althoughtheresearchidentifiedacleartendencyforcrowdworkerstobeyoungerthan
average,itshouldneverthelessbenotedthatolderagegroupswereneverabsentfromthe
samples,evenatthemostfrequentcrowdworklevels.Thisfindingchallengesthe
stereotypicalviewthatonlineworkplatforms,andtheonlineeconomymoregenerally,are
onlyofinteresttotheyoung.Moreover,thisfindingsupportsconclusionsfromelsewhere
concerningthepotentialespeciallyofonlinecrowdworkforextendingworkinglifebeyond77UKLabourForceSurveyData,April-June,2016.Availablehere:http://www.ons.gov.uk/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/employmentandemployeetypes/datasets/employmentbyoccupationemp04(Accessed30September2016).
21
normalretirementages,despiteknownchallengesencounteredbyolderpeopleattempting
toutilisecomplexITsystems.78
Education
Asnotedabove,previousresearchhassuggestedthatcrowdworkerstendtohaverelatively
highlevelsofeducationalattainment–inthecaseofUSAMTworkers,some90percent
havingcollegeleveleducations,considerablyabovethenationalaverage.79Surprisingly,our
researchfoundasomewhatdifferentresult.Comparisonsbetweendifferentcountriesare
problematicbecauseofthedifferingeducationalandqualificationsystemsinplace,and
differencesinoveralleducationallevelsofeachsample.Nevertheless,asshowninFigure12,
ineachcountrysurveyed80theproportionofcrowdworkershavingqualificationsatdegree
levelorabovewasonlyrelativelymodestlyhigherthanamongthesurveysampleasa
whole.Innocountrywastheproportionanywhereclosetothehighlevelsfoundamong,for
instance,USAMTworkers.Thisfindingmayreflectdifferencesinthepopulationsofcrowd
workersinEurope,ascomparedwiththeUSA,oritmayreflecttheinclusionofofflinecrowd
workersinthesamples.Clearly,moreresearchwillberequiredtoexplorethesedifferences
morefully.Nevertheless,theevidencefromoursurveyssuggeststhatcrowdworkersare
lessdifferentfromthewiderpopulationthanisoftenassumed.
[Figure12abouthere.]
Personalincomesofcrowdworkers
Oneimportantareaofinterestfortheresearchcentredontheincomesofcrowdworkers–
boththeirtotalpersonalincome,andtheproportiongainedfromcrowdwork.Comparison
ofincomeswascomplicatedbythefactthat,acrossthefivecountriessurveyed,therewere
threedifferentcurrenciesinuse;namely,theBritishpound,theSwedishkrone,andtheeuro
inGermany,AustriaandtheNetherlands.Furthermore,incomedataweregroupedslightly
differentlyinthenon-eurocurrencies,duetodifferingmarketresearchconventions.
78SeeBalanceNetworkSeminar-ProlongingworkinglifethroughICT:theroleofcrowdsourcingAvailablehere:https://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/soc/ier/research/balance-network/(Accessed1November2016).79Berg(2016);Ipierotis,P.(2010).80DuetodifficultiesinterpretingthefindingsrelatingtoeducationintheDutchsample,theNetherlandshavebeenexcludedfromFigure12.However,itappearsthatthepatternofrelativelysmalldifferencesineducationalattainmentofcrowdworkersisrepeatedintheNetherlands.
22
Nevertheless,despitethesecomplications,abroadpatternemergedwherebytheincome
distributionofcrowdworkerstendedtoberoughlyinlinewiththatoftheoverallsamplein
eachsurvey.81Therewassomevariationbetweencountries,though.InSweden,crowd
workersweremorelikelythanaveragetobeinthelowestincomegroup,andlesslikelyto
beinthehighestearninggroup.AsimilarpatternwasdiscernibleinAustriaandthe
Netherlands,thoughtoalesserextent.IntheUKandGermany,however,crowdworkers
weresomewhatlesslikelytobeintheverylowestearninggroupthanthesampleasa
whole.Itwasalsonotablethatupper-middleincomeearnersweremorestrongly
representedamongcrowdworkersintheUKandtheNetherlands.Thereasonsforthese
differenceswerenotclear,however,andfurtherresearchwillbeneededtoidentifythe
dynamicsbehindthesepatterns.
Thisresearchwasfurtherinterestedtoexaminethecontributionmadebyearningsfrom
crowdworktocrowdworkers'overallincomes.Therefore,respondentswhotoldusthat
theyhadearnedincomefromcrowdworkwereaskedtoestimatetheproportionoftheir
incomecomingfromsuchactivities.Figure13presentsthefindingsinthisarea.
Unfortunately,asisoftenthecasewithquestionsaboutpersonalfinances,quitehigh
numbersofrespondentsdeclinedtoanswer,eitherpreferringnottoansweratall,or
respondingthattheydidnotknow(seeFigure13fordetails).Asaresult,thesefindings
mustbetreatedwithsomecare.Nevertheless,oncemore,theoverallpictureseemsquite
clear.AsFigure13shows,forasignificantproportionofcrowdworkers,incomefromcrowd
workformslessthan10percentoftheiroverallincome.Indeed,inallcountriesexcept
Sweden,welloverhalfofcrowdworkerssaidthatcrowdworkcontributedlessthana
quarteroftheirincome.
Therewere,though,respondentsineachsurveywhotoldusthatcrowdworkprovidedallof
theirincome.Moreover,crowdworkprovidedmorethanhalfoftheincomeforaroundone
thirdofcrowdworkersintheUKandSweden,andaroundonequarterinGermanyandthe
Netherlands.Notably,inAustria,only14percentofcrowdworkersearnedmorethanhalf
theirincomeinthisway,while58percentearnedlessthan10percent.Thesefindingsare
interestinginrelationtothefinding,notedabove,oftherelativelyhighproportionof
respondentsinAustriawhotoldusthattheyhadearnedanincomefromcrowdwork.Taken
together,thisevidencesuggeststhatAustrianrespondentsweremorelikelytoengagein
81Fordetails,seeHuws,SpencerandJoyce(2016).
23
crowdwork,butlesslikelytodependonitforincome,incomparisonwiththesamplesin
othercountries–perhapsindicatingagreaterwillingnesstoexperimentwithcrowdwork,
butlessneedorwillingnesstopursueitonaregularbasis.
[Figure13abouthere.]
Discussionandconclusions
Theresearchpresentedabovewassuccessfulincapturinganumberofcharacteristicsof
crowdworkthathavenotbeenfullyrepresentedinpreviousquantitativestudies.Perhaps
themostobviousofthesewasthevarietyofcrowdwork.Sinceoursamplewasindependent
ofanyparticularplatform,thevarietyofdifferenttypesofworkthecrowdworkersare
engagedincamethroughstronglyinthefindings.Crowdworkersinallthecountries
surveyedtoldusthattheyhadperformedarangeofdifferenttypesofwork,allmediatedby
onlineplatforms,inordertogainanincome.Furthermore,themostfrequentcrowdworkers
werealsodoingthegreatestvarietyofdifferenttypesofwork.Notonlywerecrowdworkers
doingdifferenttypesofwork,theywerealsoactivelysearchingfordifferenttypesofwork.
Previousresearch,whichhastendedtofocusonparticularplatforms,hasoftenunderstated
thisvariety.
Genderdifferencesincrowdworkparticipationweresmallerthanmighthavebeen
expected,giventhescaleofgendersegregationintheworkforceatlarge.Thesefindings
matchthoseofpreviousresearch,whichhasfoundabroadlyevengenderbalance,for
instanceamongNorthAmericanAMTworkers.82However,theresearchdidfindevidenceof
genderdifferencesinthetypesofcrowdworkdone,withmentendingtoperformmore
differenttypesofworkthanwomen,butwithasomewhatnarrowergapbetweenmenan
womenintermsofthevarietyofworksought.Onepossibleexplanationforgendered
differencesinthetypesofcrowdworkdonemaybethecontinuinginfluenceofwomen's
domesticroleonpatternsofemployment.Sincepreviousresearch83hassuggestedthatone
reasonforcrowdworkersseekingonlineworkistheneedtobalanceearningopportunities
withcaringresponsibilities,itseemslikelythatwomencrowdworkersmaywelltendto
prioritisesuchwork.
82Eurofound(2016).83Berg(2016);Eurofound(2015);Irani(2015).
24
Ourfindingsalsosupportedpreviousresearchregardingtheageprofileofcrowdworkers,
whowerenotablyyoungerthanaverageineachcountrysurveyed.84Itseemslikelythatthis
findingreflectsthewellknownspreadofvariousformsofprecariousemploymentamong
youngerworkersmoregenerally.Althoughsomeyoungcrowdworkersmaychosethisform
ofwork,itcanbeexpectedthatmanyotherswillfindthemselvesleftwithfewoptionsbut
toresorttopiecingtogetheranincomefromwhateversourcesareavailable;thereby
qualifyingformembershipofMcKinsey's'reluctant'and'financiallystrapped'categories.85
Thisinterpretationisfurthersupportedbyourfindingthattheageprofileofcrowdworkers
becomesincreasinglyyouthfulasthefrequencyofcrowdworkincreases;suggestingthe
presenceofparticularpressuresonyoungcrowdworkers.Despitethepreponderanceof
youngeragegroupsamongcrowdworkers,however,itisimportanttoappreciatethatolder
workersalsoearnincomefromworkorganisedviaonlineplatforms.Thepotentialforonline
crowdworktoprovideanincomeforolderpeoplehasbeennotedbypreviousresearch,86
andourfindingssupportthoseconclusions.
Amoresurprisingfindingfromourresearchconcernstheeducationalattainmentofcrowd
workers.Previousresearchhadclearlysuggestedthatcrowdworkerstendtobesignificantly
morehighlyeducatedthanaverage.87Asshownabove,however,thisresearchfoundmuch
smallerdifferencesineducationallevelbetweencrowdworkersandthesampleasawhole.
Whilecrowdworkerstendedtobemorehighlyeducatedthanaverage,theywerenot
dramaticallyso.Themostlikelyexplanationforthisdifferenceisthatoursurveyincluded
crowdworkerswhoworkofflineandwhocarryoutdrivingwork–whereasprevious
researchhastendedtoconcentrateononlinecrowdworkers.Asotherresearchhasshown,
onlinecrowdworkerstendtobe'internetliterate',88anditseemslikelythatthisattribute
wouldbeassociatedwithgreatertimespentinformaleducation.Thefactthatourresearch
showsasignificantextensionofcrowdworkbeyondtheranksofthehighlyeducated,
however,demonstratesthewidespreadofinternetskillsamongthepopulationasawhole,
especiallybutnotexclusivelytheyoung.
Thefindingspresentedabovealsoclearlyshowthelowearningsthatmostcrowdworkers
84Berg(2016);Ipierotis(2010).85McKinseyGlobalInstitute(2016).86BalanceNetworkSeminar-ProlongingworkinglifethroughICT:theroleofcrowdsourcing.87Berg(2016);Ipierotis(2010).88Ibid.
25
receivefortheirendeavours.Crowdworkerswerecommonlyfoundamongthelowest-
earninggroupsinallcountriessurvey(withthepartialexceptionsoftheUKandthe
Netherlands).89Whatismore,forverymanycrowdworkers,crowdworkcontributesonlya
smallproportionoftheirincome.Thisevidencesupportspreviousresearchsuggestingthat
crowdworkisoftenasupplementtolowincomesgainedfromothersources.90
Nevertheless,afurtherclearfindingofoursurveyswastheidentificationofasignificant
minorityforwhomcrowdworkprovidesall,ormorethanhalf,oftheirincome.Again,this
findingwaspresentinallcountriessurveyed.Theextenttowhichthisgroupmightgrowin
sizeinthefutureremainstobeseen.
Thesecomments,ofcourse,pointtotheneedforfurtherresearch.Whilethefindings
presentedabovecertainlywillnotprovidethelastwordaboutthecharacteristicsofcrowd
working–orofthewideron-demandeconomy–theyhavedemonstratedthatitispossible
todetermineitsextentinonlinepopulationsandidentifyasampleofcrowdworkers
independentlyofanyparticularplatform,makingitpossibletoinvestigatetheirbroad
characteristics.However,asinanyotherone-offsurvey,theidentificationofcorrelations
doesnotprovideinformationoncausality,andfurtherqualitativeresearchwillberequired
toinvestigatearangeofquestionsconcerningthemotivationofcrowdworkers,aswellas
thedetailsoftheirworkingconditions.Whilewearebeginningtounderstandtheextentof
crowdwork,thedetailedcharacteristicsofthecrowdworkforceremain,forthetimebeing,
elusive.
89Evidenceofslightlyhigherlevelsofcrowdworkamongupper-middleincomegroupsintheUKandNetherlandsrequiresfurtherinvestigation.90Berg(2016);Eurofound(2015);Irani(2015).
26
Figure1.Participationintheonlineeconomyasasourceofincome,bycountry
Source:HertfordshireBusinessSchoolCrowdWorkSurvey,2016Base:2238respondentsintheUK,2146respondentsinSweden,2180RespondentsinGermany,1969respondentsinAustriaand2126respondentsintheNetherlands(weighted).
54%
31%
10%
10%
8%
9%
59%
13%
10%
12%
8%
10%
55%
32%
12%
12%
11%
12%
66%
45%
21%
18%
16%
19%
62%
25%
9%
13%
8%
9%
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70%
Sellownpossessions(egEbay)
Resellproductsononlinemarketplace(egAmazon)
Sellself-madeproducts(egEtsy)
Sell/resellonownwebsite
Renttopayingguest(egAirbnb)
Anycrowdwork
NL
AT
DE
SE
UK
27
Figure2.Frequencyofcrowdworking,bycountry
Source:HertfordshireBusinessSchoolCrowdWorkSurvey,2016Base:2238respondentsintheUK,2146respondentsinSweden,2180RespondentsinGermany,1969respondentsinAustriaand2126respondentsintheNetherlands(weighted).
9%
6%
5%
10%
6%
5%
12%
8%
6%
19%
13%
9%
9%
6%
5%
0% 2% 4% 6% 8% 10% 12% 14% 16% 18% 20%
Anycrowdwork
Atleastmonthly
Atleastweekly
NL
AT
DE
SE
UK
28
Figure3.Searchforcrowdwork,bycountry
Source:HertfordshireBusinessSchoolCrowdWorkSurvey,2016Base:2238respondentsintheUK,2146respondentsinSweden,2180RespondentsinGermany,1969respondentsinAustriaand2126respondentsintheNetherlands(weighted).
7%
12%
19%
9%
16%
22%
13% 13%
19%16%
21%
34%
8% 9%
16%
0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
30%
35%
40%
Crowdworkdriving Crowdworkoutsidehome Crowdworkfromhome
UK SE DE AT NL
29
Figure4.Useofjobsearchplatformsbyfrequentcrowdworkers,occasionalcrowd
workersandnoncrowdworkers,bycountry(%)
Source:HertfordshireBusinessSchoolCrowdWorkSurvey,2016Base:2238respondentsintheUK,2146respondentsinSweden,2180RespondentsinGermany,1969respondentsinAustriaand2125respondentsintheNetherlands(weighted).
47%
83%91%
33%
83%91%
33%
78%86%
45%
91% 91%
39%
88%93%
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
Noncrowdworkers Occasionalcrowdworkers
Atleastweeklycrowdworkers
AT DE NL SE UK
30
Figure5.Crowdworkandotheremployment
Source:HertfordshireBusinessSchoolCrowdWorkSurvey,2016Base:2238respondentsintheUK,2146respondentsinSweden,2180RespondentsinGermany,1969respondentsinAustriaand2126respondentsintheNetherlands(weighted).
64%
74%
62%
73%69%
78%81%
78% 76%79%80%
84% 82%78% 80%
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
UK SE DE AT NL
Surveybase Anycrowdwork Weeklycrowdwork
31
Figure6.Typeofcrowdworkdone,bycountry
Source:HertfordshireBusinessSchoolCrowdWorkSurvey,2016.Base:235respondentsintheUK,243respondentsinSweden,304RespondentsinGermany,428respondentsinAustriaand245respondentsintheNetherlandsstatingthattheyhadevercarriedoutcrowdwork(weighted).
58%
61%
68%
57%
46%
54%
55%
46%
53%
65%
71%
54%
53%
57%
55%
51%
57%
64%
72%
58%
51%
59%
60%
52%
49%
64%
74%
53%
46%
55%
51%
49%
51%
52%
60%
45%
44%
46%
42%
39%
0% 10%20%30%40%50%60%70%80%
Professionalwork
CreativeorITworkonyourcomputerorotheronlinedevice
Ofticework,shorttasksor'clickwork'
Errandsorofticeworkoncustomer’spremises
Personalservicework
Regularworkinsomebodyelse'shome
Occasionalworkinsomebodyelse'shome
Taxiorotherdrivingwork
UK
SE
DE
AT
NL
32
Figure7.Anycrowdwork,bygender(%)
Source:HertfordshireBusinessSchoolCrowdWorkSurvey,2016Base:207respondentsintheUK,198respondentsinSweden,252RespondentsinGermany,359respondentsinAustriaand187respondentsintheNetherlandsstatingthattheyhadevercarriedoutcrowdwork(weighted).
48%
62%
62%
59%
56%
52%
38%
38%
41%
44%
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%
UK
SE
DE
AT
NL
Male Female
33
Figure8.Averagenumberoftypesofworkcited:anycrowdwork,bygenderandcountry
Source:HertfordshireBusinessSchoolCrowdWorkSurvey,2016.Base:231respondentsintheUK,234respondentsinSweden,295RespondentsinGermany,407respondentsinAustriaand238respondentsintheNetherlandsstatingthattheyhadevercarriedoutcrowdwork(weighted).
4.95.2 5.1 4.9
4.44.0 3.8
4.23.7
3.1
0.0
1.0
2.0
3.0
4.0
5.0
6.0
UK SE DE AT NL
male female
34
Figure9.Ageoftotaladultsamplesampled,bycountry(%)
Source:HertfordshireBusinessSchoolCrowdWorkSurvey,2016.Base:2235respondentsintheUK,2133respondentsinSweden,2170RespondentsinGermany,1951respondentsinAustriaand2115respondentsintheNetherlands(weighted).Note:Theunder-24agecategoryincludespeopleaged16-24intheUK,Sweden,GermanyandtheNetherlandsand18-24inAustria.The55+agecategoryincludespeopleaged55-65inSwedenandAustria,55-70inGermanyandtheNetherlandsand55-75intheUK
16%
18%
14%
13%
15%
18%
19%
17%
20%
17%
19%
21%
19%
22%
19%
19%
21%
23%
25%
21%
29%
21%
27%
20%
27%
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%
UK
SE
DE
AT
NL
Upto24 25-34 35-44 45-54 55+
35
Figure10.Ageofcrowdworkers,bycountry(%)
Source:HertfordshireBusinessSchoolCrowdWorkSurvey,2016.Base:207respondentsintheUK,198respondentsinSweden,252RespondentsinGermany,359respondentsinAustriaand187respondentsintheNetherlandsstatingthattheyhadevercarriedoutcrowdwork(weighted).Note:Theunder-24agecategoryincludespeopleaged16-24intheUK,Sweden,GermanyandtheNetherlandsand18-24inAustria.The55+agecategoryincludespeopleaged55-65inSwedenandAustria,55-70inGermanyandtheNetherlandsand55-75intheUK
20%
27%
20%
25%
19%
30%
30%
31%
22%
23%
22%
17%
17%
21%
24%
12%
14%
17%
19%
17%
15%
11%
15%
12%
17%
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%
UK
SE
DE
AT
NL
Upto24 25-34 35-44 45-54 55+
36
Figure11.Ageofweeklycrowdworkers,bycountry(%)
Source:HertfordshireBusinessSchoolCrowdWorkSurvey,2016.Base:104respondentsintheUK,104respondentsinSweden,135RespondentsinGermany,186respondentsinAustriaand104respondentsintheNetherlandsstatingthattheyhadevercarriedoutcrowdwork(weighted).Note:Theunder-24agecategoryincludespeopleaged16-24intheUK,Sweden,GermanyandtheNetherlandsand18-24inAustria.The55+agecategoryincludespeopleaged55-65inSwedenandAustria,55-70inGermanyandtheNetherlandsand55-75intheUK
23%
28%
22%
30%
22%
32%
30%
30%
27%
20%
24%
19%
20%
18%
22%
10%
14%
17%
18%
20%
11%
9%
11%
7%
17%
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%
UK
SE
DE
AT
NL
Upto24 25-34 35-44 45-54 55+
37
Figure12.Educationalattainment:proportionofcrowdworkershavingdegreelevel
qualificationsorabove,comparedwithsampleasawhole.
Source:HertfordshireBusinessSchoolCrowdWorkSurvey,2016Base:2238respondentsintheUK,2146respondentsinSweden,2180RespondentsinGermany,1969respondentsinAustriaand2126respondentsintheNetherlands(weighted).
42%35%
27%
17%
52%
39%35%
22%
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
UK SE DE AT
Surveybase Anycrowdwork
38
Figure13.Earningsfromcrowdworkasaproportionofallincome,allcrowdworkers,by
country(%)
Source:HertfordshireBusinessSchoolCrowdWorkSurvey,2016.Base:237respondentsintheUK(weighted)with24%don’tknoworpreferringnottoanswerexcluded,248respondentsinSweden(weighted)with34%don’tknoworpreferringnottoanswerexcluded,308respondentsinGermany(weighted)with28%don’tknoworpreferringnottoanswerexcluded,434respondentsinAustria(weighted)with31%don’tknoworpreferringnottoanswerexcluded,251respondentsintheNetherlands(weighted)with44%don’tknoworpreferringnottoanswerexcluded.
41%
15%
10%
15%
12%
6%
33%
13%
18%
20%
10%
6%
44%
19%
12%
15%
7%
3%
58%
15%
12%
6%
5%
3%
51%
13%
11%
6%
8%
11%
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70%
Upto10%
10%to25%
25%to50%
50%to75%
75%to99%
All
UK
SE
DE
AT
NL