Research: More Than 1 in 3 US Workers Now Hold 'Disposable' Jobs via Staffing, Freelance, or Marginal Arrangements

NewsData.io · United States · Sep 7, 2026

A labor economist's new book and nationally representative survey of 6,000+ workers finds that roughly 57 million U.S. workers — over one-third of the workforce — hold what the author terms 'disposable jobs,' including staffing firm contractors (13% of workforce), organizational freelancers (5%), and marginal workers with high built-in turnover (17%). The research highlights that contractors and marginal workers earn less and report lower job satisfaction than standard employees, while employers are motivated primarily by cost savings on benefits and workforce flexibility. For staffing agencies, the data underscores both the scale of the contingent workforce market and growing scrutiny of contractor working conditions and the structural forces driving contingent labor demand.