In the wake of the ‘Great Resignation’ that shook America’s labor force this year, a new survey conducted by Fiverr International and HR platform Hibob has found that 54% of HR leaders and hiring managers said that workers are leaving their companies to set up their own shops or work for themselves by freelancing or start small businesses.
Ronni Zehavi, CEO of Hibob, told GOBankingRates that people are putting their personal lives and happiness first before their jobs.
In many cases, Hibob said, freelancing and flexibility go hand-in-hand; it provides more autonomy than many traditional roles. Shifting from a traditional full-time job to a freelance role provides people several benefits, including exploring their passions, controlling their schedule, deciding what projects to take on and where and when to work. In addition, it gives people the opportunity to become true experts in a niche area, which can pave the way for high earnings.
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“While the risk of not succeeding as a freelancer exists just as much now as it had years ago, people are realizing that the current economic situation has created a safety net. Given so many organizations are struggling to hire, people feel confident that they will be able to find a full-time role again easily if they choose not to freelance,” he said of the risk involved.
The survey also found that it is not only young people that are quitting their jobs. About 46% said that at their companies, managers and directors are leaving more than entry-level employees.
“In fact, it’s the more experienced, older workers that are leaving,” Malbin said. “This leaves companies with a massive skills gap — as it’s not entry-level positions they need to fill. They need to fill manager and director roles, ones that require years of experience and knowledge. It’s likely these people are leaving to spend more time with family, enjoy the freedom that comes with not being attached to a specific job, and have better work-life balance,” Shany Malbin, general manager of Fiverr Business, told GObankingRates.
The number of Americans who left their jobs dropped slightly by 200,000 from 4.4 million in September to 4.2 million, according to the Labor Department’s Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) report that came out on Wednesday, Dec. 8.