New Poll Shows Contingent Work is a Potent Issue

Report from the National Alliance for Fair Employment

The growth of nonstandard work is no secret to the American public. A poll conducted in January 2000, for the National Alliance for Fair Employment (NAFFE) by the polling firm Lake Snell Perry and Associates, shows much public concern with the growth of contingent work and a rejection of unfair treatment for workers in nonstandard jobs.

Awareness
Three out of five members of the general public (61%) have either been in a contingent position themselves or have known someone who, in the last ten years, had to work as a part-time, temporary, or contract employee while preferring a standard job. The consequences often hit close to home. One in five (22%) has personally taken a contingent job involuntarily, and an additional 13% have a member of their household who has been in that position.

Fairness
Over two-thirds of the public (68%) believe it unfair that in some companies, employees who are hired as part-time, temporary, or contract workers get paid lower hourly wages than regular employees doing the same job at the same level. A sizable majority in every demographic group agreed that such treatment is unfair; less than one-quarter (24%) considered it fair.

Voting on the Issue
Sixty percent of the public reported a willingness to vote for a candidate for Congress who supported legislation requiring employers to give the same rate of base pay and benefits to part-time, temporary, or contract employees doing the same job as regular employees. Nearly three in ten (28%) reported they would be much more likely to vote for a Congressional candidate who supports such legislation. In sum, the numbers show that the public is aware of the issue and that it has impacted their lives and the lives of people they know. A large majority believes that treating contingent workers differently from other workers is unfair. For many, this issue matters when they vote.

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