The Office for National Statistics have just released their latest report, and it has emerged that most self employed people are happy with their status.
Out of the thousands of people surveyed, a staggering 86% commented they were “very satisfied” in self employment, and with a large percentage of these people being umbrella contractors it’s easy to see why the sector is going from strength to strength.
Lorence Nye, policy advisor for the IPSE (The Association of Independent Professionals and the Self-Employed) said in response to the report that “self-employment has soared in popularity since the turn of the century.”
She is indeed correct in her statement, with my calculation being, that as of May 2016 we now have 4.7 million people in the UK who are considered to be self employed, while in the year 2000 that figure was somewhere around 3.2 million. This means in just over 15 years we have seen around 1.5 million more people become their own boss and enjoy all the benefits that comes from that.
Of course, it’s not always easy, and when times get tough many contractors are the first to be cut from the payroll, but overall there is a real sense of achievement from controlling your own destiny and being in charge of who you work for and for how much.
With all of this in mind it’s easy to see why millions of people are very satisfied in self employment, especially since the internet has really taken off and now many umbrella contractors can do most of their business from home. Never before has this been possible for so many UK residents, and it really gives them a chance to achieve a work-life balance that has obviously contributed to the general feeling of happiness.
The report went on to include that only 2% of those surveyed would like to go back and work as an employee. To be honest, I’m surprised that anybody would have that desire after spending a few months or years working for themselves.
However, I guess there are some people out there who enjoy the security of a regular pay packet, although just how secure that really is the subject of another news story completely.
What I do know is this: with so many umbrella contractors completely happy with their situation, it’s only a matter of time before the word starts to get out about the benefits of self employment, which means in another 15 years we should see another 1 or 2 million added to the already large figure of 4.7 million.
