Johnny Timpson: The 'gig economy' and the need for a financial safety net

clock • 4 min read

Scottish Widows' Johnny Timpson highlights the need - and opportunity - to provide protection for self-employed workers and those with short-term contracts.

The ‘gig economy' is a phrase we hear used more and more these days, and describes the increasing prevalence of short-term contracts or freelance work in the UK employment market. In Britain today around 4.8m people, or approximately 15% of workers, are self-employed, having grown from 3.8m in 2008 [1]. This increase has been driven by modern technology, the growth of the service sector (especially online shopping), and the continued tax advantages of being a self-employed worker. This trend is forecast to continue to grow, so what does this mean for protection advisers? Target ...

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