Women want to join the gig economy — but they can't sacrifice their benefits

Gig work has proven to be a great alternative to the traditional 9-to-5 job, but women are not entirely convinced of the viability of this as a career. At least not yet. 

Currently, 47% of gig workers in the U.S. are women, according to data from Forbes, compared with 53% who are men. But the gap between the two demographics isn't due to a lack of interest from women, according to new data from employee staffing platform Jitjatjo, but from a lack of employee benefits. Thirty-nine percent of women considered that a significant deterrent when looking at gig work as a career option.  

"The gig economy is moving in the right direction in terms of having fair and equitable experiences," says Dominic Esposito, CEO of Jitjatjo. "But ultimately, a lack of diversity in any type of work, but especially in gig work which relies on diverse skill sets, can cause a significant disadvantage [when it comes to making progress.]" 

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A quarter of women said they would consider gig work in lieu of returning to the office full-time due to the potential flexibility, according to Jitjatjo's research. If provided with offerings such as health insurance, retirement plans, paid-time off, sick leave, holiday pay and unemployment benefits, women would trust the gig economy more than long-term shift work, according to Jitjatjo. But it's up to the organizations employing gig workers to sweeten the deal, so to speak.  

"Even just the most basic life insurance can actually give people more stability and make them feel supported," Esposito says. "It showcases to employees that there's so much more in this space than just gig opportunities."

And while access to benefits affects every employee, regardless of gender, there are systemic reasons women would be less inclined to enter the field without certain securities. For example, women spend 18% more on healthcare costs, tend to visit healthcare professionals more often and are more likely to surpass the deductibles than men. This makes improving the benefits offered for gig jobs an important element to attract diverse workers.  

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"It's about the flexibility and adaptability of the space that we operate in," Esposito says. "Gig work is the epitome of a changing set of environments, set of skills and personalities. Helping women join the gig economy or embrace it for the first time is really important, because that's what's going to make the results of this line of work most successful."

Thankfully, there has been some progress in the field, albeit slow. In 2023, Uber made life insurance available to its drivers and DoorDash offers medical, dental and vision insurance plans for its drivers including fertility coverage, as well as life, disability and occupational accident insurance. But there's still a long way to go until it becomes common practice.

"Employers will have to make some big decisions moving forward," Esposito says. "But I hope that employers understand that those kinds of services are much more valuable than they used to be and that they can go a long way by just doing a few things."