Rising food and gas prices are the biggest motivator for people in the US to do extra work during the holidays, Indeed Flex finds.
Austin, TX, Two-thirds (65%) of American workers are taking on extra jobs or doing overtime this holiday season to cope with rising prices and bills, data released by Indeed Flex, the online marketplace for flexible and temporary work, has revealed.
Indeed Flex’s survey of US workers1 found that a fifth (19%) of those who currently work full-time or part-time intend to take on an additional, temporary job with another employer this holiday season to earn extra money.
Two in five (46%) people who do only temporary work are also planning to take on extra shifts over the holidays to boost their earnings.
Meanwhile, half (51%) of those in full-time and part-time jobs plan to work overtime for their current employer during the holidays in order to make more money.
Overall, more than half of people taking up extra work now (63%) are doing more in December 2022 than they did at this time in 2021.
Nearly two in five (37%) of those doing extra work over the holiday period didn’t take on any additional hours at all during the 2021 holiday season.
Of those who did do some overtime or extra work last year, 26% are doing even more in 2022.
With the annual rate of inflation still sitting at 7.1% in November2, the steadily rising cost of food and gas is the main reason people choose to take on extra jobs or overtime, while two in five (46%) said they were prompted to do so because of rising household bills.
A quarter (27%) are doing extra work to top up their income for leisure reasons, such as buying gifts or paying for a vacation. A quarter (27%) are doing more work as a result of a change in their family circumstances.
“Rising costs mean many people have discovered that their income no longer stretches as far as it once did, and are using the holiday season to make some extra money,” said Stacey Lane, US General Manager at Indeed Flex. “Luckily, this is an ideal time of year for anyone who wants to take on extra shifts in the temporary jobs market, as there is always high demand from employers over the holidays. The benefit of temporary work is that people can choose the shifts that suit them best, and fit work around their other commitments.
Hiring temporary staff also enables employers to absorb peaks in customer demand at a time when unemployment is low, and when it can be difficult or undesirable to fill vacancies permanently.”
Indeed Flex is available to job seekers and employers in California, Texas, Tennessee, Ohio, Georgia, and Arkansas.
Notes to Editors
1Indeed Flex survey of 2,500 US workers.
2Bureau of Labor Statistics
About Indeed Flex:
We’re Indeed Flex, a digital staffing platform empowering job seekers with a fast way to find temporary work that fits their lifestyles. Indeed Flex allows people and employers to find temporary work and staff with just a tap of an app. It offers the work you want, when and where you want. For more information, visit https://indeedflex.com/