A snapshot of the $1.2 trillion freelance economy in the U.S. in 2020

More than one-third of the American workforce freelance amid the Covid-19 pandemic, contributing $1.2 trillion to the U.S. economy, a study by Upwork revealed Tuesday. This was a 22% increase since 2019 and it was fueled in part by an influx of younger, highly-skilled professionals seeking flexible alternatives to traditional employment. 

Upwork’s seventh annual study entitled Freelance Forward surveyed more than 6,000 U.S. workers over the age of 18 and found that 59 million Americans performed freelance work in the past 12 months, representing 36% of the U.S. workforce, an increase of 2 million freelancers since 2019. It was conducted June 15 to July 7.

 Key findings offer surprising…