The shift toward independent contractors began in the 1970s, when companies hired temporary office support workers, said Alec Levenson, a research scientist at the Center for Effective Organizations at USC.
As the temp industry became more efficient, companies also began hiring people with certain skill sets for short-term projects.
"Companies have been on a long-run trajectory of trying to move to labor on demand as much as possible," he said.
Still, the economy has made freelancing tough. Surveys of members indicate that about 60% of independent contractors are having a hard time making a living, with about 12% of freelancers taking government assistance because they aren't making enough money. A majority of contractors say they would still prefer to have full-time jobs, said West of the Center for a Changing Workforce.
Then, too, there are people who prefer the independent life. Sherie Farah, a freelance chef in Santa Monica, said that 2009 was her best year ever. The onetime executive chef moved to Southern California four years ago after tiring of the stress of working in high-end restaurants.Now she makes a living cooking private dinners, catering and helping clients plan nutritional meals.
"I think my quality of life is better," she said. "But it does take a little bit of time to get established."
It hasn't been easy for Marta Victoria, a freelance graphic designer. The Internet has made her job harder: Clients can contract work from China on the cheap, or buy art from stock photo sites that don't charge much. At the same time, her costs are rising.
"My healthcare is going through the roof, I don't have life insurance, I don't have an IRA," she said.
She pushes herself to work longer hours to make up for the lack of benefits, but there's a lot of competition out there with so many people unemployed, she said.
"I work harder, but everyone's working harder," she said. "I don't know what I'm going to do."
alana.semuels @latimes.com
