Self-Employed Contractors in Australia: How Many and Who Are They?

Abstract

Despite claims that the use of contractors has become increasingly common in Australia, little evidence exists as to the extent of their use. Based on survey data collected in 1994 from a nationally representative sample of more than 2000 Australian households, this article provides estimates of the incidence of self- employed contractors in the non-agricultural workforce. Moreover, an attempt is made at distinguishing between those contractors who are truly independent of the service recipient organization and those who appear to be dependent on a single hiring organization and hence may have much more in common with wage and salary earners than with independent contractors. Finally, distinctive characteris tics of self-employed contractors are identified.