Gig work has been on the rise in recent years, as has global hiring. Last year, more employers hiring globally opted to turn to contractors, according to data from global employment platform Oyster’s customers, shared exclusively with HR Brew.
Gig work spike. Oyster reported a “46% increase in new contractor engagements” between 2023 and 2024. Meanwhile, permanent full-time hires declined by 2% in that same period.
Workers historically may have viewed contracting as undesirable because of the burden of paying for their own taxes and benefits, and having less job security than a full-time role. But that might be changing, Marina Farthouat, Oyster’s VP of people, told HR Brew.
These days, workers are gravitating to gig work for a number of reasons, according to Farthouat. First, they increasingly see the value of taking on multiple projects at once without being beholden to one company. Second, on Oyster’s platform, these workers tend to have in-demand skills and can charge more as contractors for employers seeking their expertise. And finally, with concerns over layoffs, gig work might be safer to take on than relying on employment from one company.
“We’ve seen that almost inversion to an extent where what we usually saw as something imposed on to people is now a choice, sometimes temporary, sometimes longer term, but a choice for more freedom,” Farthouat said.
However, HR leaders must be wary of certain challenges with gig work, such as compliance concerns with misclassifying employees as contractors, and potential conflicts of interest, like simultaneously working on other projects for a competitor. But overall, employers’ growing interest in using independent contractors shows that companies are expanding their horizons when it comes to finding labor.
Quick-to-read HR news & insights
From recruiting and retention to company culture and the latest in HR tech, HR Brew delivers up-to-date industry news and tips to help HR pros stay nimble in today’s fast-changing business environment.
“Companies that are going global are thinking of talent in a much more diverse way now. So they’re thinking of skills. They’re thinking of multiple countries. And as a result, they’re also engaging contractors,” Farthouat said.
Going global. Beyond contract work, global hiring is becoming a mainstay for many employers. Per Oyster’s data, 57% of companies plan to hire talent in another country in the next year. That’s opened the door for workers in emerging markets to land jobs at companies based in countries with strong economies. In fact, 47% of new hires on Oyster came from emerging markets in 2024. And once employers make one hire in these markets, they’re more likely to return to them again.
Deploying an international hiring strategy is becoming fundamental for many more companies, particularly as they navigate challenges like skills and labor shortages.
“I think even employers that are fairly local, to an extent, are still thinking of geostrategy in the sense that it's accessible to them to buy a particular skill, to buy a particular experience,” Farthouat said. “Before, people either had the toolkit of full-time employment, then they got a toolkit of contractors, and now they have the toolkit of global.”