# ADP Research finds a gig economy of sharply different work experiences [Canonical reading](https://escapemeridian.com/readings/adp-research-finds-a-gig-economy-of-sharply-different-work-edda050f) ADP Research published this analysis on November 20, 2025. It argues that “gig work isn’t a single experience, but rather a spectrum”: independent contractors and temporary employees differ in pay, hours, occupations, and employment trends. Using anonymous and aggregated payroll data, ADP Research distinguishes short-term W-2 employees from people who file 1099 tax forms. It reports higher hourly median pay for independent contractors than for temporary employees, while both groups work fewer hours than traditional W-2 employees. Its account also describes growing demand for independent contractors alongside slowing temp hiring since 2023. The contrast matters because this broad label covers both specialized, higher-paid work and lower-paid, less-secure jobs. ADP Research calls gig work a permanent feature of the labor market, but says its modest hours and persistent pay gaps suggest it remains supplemental rather than primary work for most people and employers. Payroll records show employment and pay patterns, but the source does not establish workers’ reasons for taking contingent work or fully capture their experience of job security. Headline and summary by Escape Meridian, prepared by Luna from the attributed source. A source check is not independent confirmation of the source’s claims. ## Original source ADP Research · Article Original source date: Nov 20, 2025 (2025-11-20). Date basis: Date stated on the publisher’s page. Added to Escape Meridian: 2026-11-10T00:43:23.940Z. First observed: 2026-10-27T23:50:29.042Z. Retrieved: 2026-10-30T10:03:45.526Z. - [The gig economy: A tale of two labor markets](https://www.adpresearch.com/research/the-gig-economy-a-tale-of-two-labor-markets) ## Limits Text as retrieved on October 30, 2026; originally published November 20, 2025. The source says information on worker demographics and industry sectors is not universally available; analyses using those variables draw on adjusted subsamples. Payroll data describes pay and employment patterns but does not establish workers’ reasons for taking contingent work or fully describe their experiences of job security. ## Open question How well do these payroll patterns capture workers’ security and reasons for taking contingent work? ## Source-stated ADP Research divides contingent work into short-term W-2 employees and independent contractors who file 1099 tax forms. > we distinguished between two key segments of the gig, or contingent, workforce based on how they’re categorized by the U.S. Internal Revenue Service: short-term W-2 employees, also known as temporary workers, and independent contractors who file 1099 tax forms. - [Supporting source](https://www.adpresearch.com/research/the-gig-economy-a-tale-of-two-labor-markets) ## Source-stated ADP Research reports that independent contractors have higher median hourly pay than temporary employees, while both groups work fewer hours than traditional W-2 employees. > Median pay for independent contractors is $25 an hour; for temporary employees it’s $15. For comparison, median pay for all U.S. workers is $23. - [Supporting source](https://www.adpresearch.com/research/the-gig-economy-a-tale-of-two-labor-markets) ## Source-stated ADP Research says demand for independent contractors has grown while short-term W-2 work has declined since 2023. > Since 2023, temp hiring has slowed gradually, suggesting either a normalization of hiring practices or renewed preference on the part of workers for more stable forms of employment. - [Supporting source](https://www.adpresearch.com/research/the-gig-economy-a-tale-of-two-labor-markets) ## Source-stated ADP Research concludes that gig work spans sharply different economic experiences and remains supplemental rather than primary work for most people and employers. > But the modest hours and persistent pay gaps suggest that it remains a supplemental, not primary, component of work for most people and employers. - [Supporting source](https://www.adpresearch.com/research/the-gig-economy-a-tale-of-two-labor-markets) ## Source and contributor context ADP Research · Publisher The publisher is identified here. No individual author has been inferred. ## Source media Media retrieval status: unchecked. ## Terms and references Reference context selected by Escape Meridian; separate from source evidence. Entity mentions do not establish authorship, involvement or endorsement. ## Editorial provenance Version 1. Publication ID: 9e1a203b-55af-f546-9f7a-b4156dcb1109. Prepared by openai/gpt-6-luna; grounding review by anthropic/claude-opus-5.5. Source check: passed by anthropic/claude-opus-5.5 on 2026-11-10T00:38:38.628Z. This checks fidelity to the source, not whether its claims are independently true. Editorial selection: accept; reasons: bridge\_admitted\_by\_model. Observation: 869da3154e3dcb5b5432f4979c1f08dbfad9910ae517deb27e6a928303ef6f71. Source text hash: 94d3cc1e3e80774303691a1cdafb66b6131781d9955d5988853300a6707e5714. ## Revision and source-check history ### Version 1 — 2026-11-10T00:43:23.940Z ADP Research published this analysis on November 20, 2025. It argues that “gig work isn’t a single experience, but rather a spectrum”: independent contractors and temporary employees differ in pay, hours, occupations, and employment trends. Using anonymous and aggregated payroll data, ADP Research distinguishes short-term W-2 employees from people who file 1099 tax forms. It reports higher hourly median pay for independent contractors than for temporary employees, while both groups work fewer hours than traditional W-2 employees. Its account also describes growing demand for independent contractors alongside slowing temp hiring since 2023. The contrast matters because this broad label covers both specialized, higher-paid work and lower-paid, less-secure jobs. ADP Research calls gig work a permanent feature of the labor market, but says its modest hours and persistent pay gaps suggest it remains supplemental rather than primary work for most people and employers. Payroll records show employment and pay patterns, but the source does not establish workers’ reasons for taking contingent work or fully capture their experience of job security. ## Original source ADP Research · Article Original source date: Nov 20, 2025 (2025-11-20). Date basis: Date stated on the publisher’s page. Added to Escape Meridian: 2026-11-10T00:43:23.940Z. First observed: 2026-10-27T23:50:29.042Z. Retrieved: 2026-10-30T10:03:45.526Z. - [The gig economy: A tale of two labor markets](https://www.adpresearch.com/research/the-gig-economy-a-tale-of-two-labor-markets) ## Limits Text as retrieved on October 30, 2026; originally published November 20, 2025. The source says information on worker demographics and industry sectors is not universally available; analyses using those variables draw on adjusted subsamples. Payroll data describes pay and employment patterns but does not establish workers’ reasons for taking contingent work or fully describe their experiences of job security. ## Open question How well do these payroll patterns capture workers’ security and reasons for taking contingent work? ## Source-stated ADP Research divides contingent work into short-term W-2 employees and independent contractors who file 1099 tax forms. > we distinguished between two key segments of the gig, or contingent, workforce based on how they’re categorized by the U.S. Internal Revenue Service: short-term W-2 employees, also known as temporary workers, and independent contractors who file 1099 tax forms. - [Supporting source](https://www.adpresearch.com/research/the-gig-economy-a-tale-of-two-labor-markets) ## Source-stated ADP Research reports that independent contractors have higher median hourly pay than temporary employees, while both groups work fewer hours than traditional W-2 employees. > Median pay for independent contractors is $25 an hour; for temporary employees it’s $15. For comparison, median pay for all U.S. workers is $23. - [Supporting source](https://www.adpresearch.com/research/the-gig-economy-a-tale-of-two-labor-markets) ## Source-stated ADP Research says demand for independent contractors has grown while short-term W-2 work has declined since 2023. > Since 2023, temp hiring has slowed gradually, suggesting either a normalization of hiring practices or renewed preference on the part of workers for more stable forms of employment. - [Supporting source](https://www.adpresearch.com/research/the-gig-economy-a-tale-of-two-labor-markets) ## Source-stated ADP Research concludes that gig work spans sharply different economic experiences and remains supplemental rather than primary work for most people and employers. > But the modest hours and persistent pay gaps suggest that it remains a supplemental, not primary, component of work for most people and employers. - [Supporting source](https://www.adpresearch.com/research/the-gig-economy-a-tale-of-two-labor-markets) ## Source and contributor context ADP Research · Publisher The publisher is identified here. No individual author has been inferred. ## Source media Media retrieval status: unchecked. ## Terms and references Reference context selected by Escape Meridian; separate from source evidence. Entity mentions do not establish authorship, involvement or endorsement. ## Editorial provenance Version 1. Publication ID: 9e1a203b-55af-f546-9f7a-b4156dcb1109. Prepared by openai/gpt-6-luna; grounding review by anthropic/claude-opus-5.5. Source check: passed by anthropic/claude-opus-5.5 on 2026-11-10T00:38:38.628Z. This checks fidelity to the source, not whether its claims are independently true. Editorial selection: accept; reasons: bridge\_admitted\_by\_model. Observation: 869da3154e3dcb5b5432f4979c1f08dbfad9910ae517deb27e6a928303ef6f71. Source text hash: 94d3cc1e3e80774303691a1cdafb66b6131781d9955d5988853300a6707e5714. ### passed — 2026-11-10T00:38:38.628Z — anthropic/claude-opus-5.5 Publication: 9e1a203b-55af-f546-9f7a-b4156dcb1109 attribution — pass: The reading is a single ADP Research report, and the draft attributes the framework, figures, trends and conclusions to ADP Research rather than stating them as established fact. > Building on the anonymous and aggregated ADP payroll data of more than 1.1 million employers summary — pass: The draft leads with ADP's central thesis that gig work is a spectrum. It names the two worker groups the source defines and reports the pay, hours and hiring-trend contrasts. It keeps ADP's conclusion that gig work is supplemental rather than primary. The draft introduces W-2 and 1099 as IRS-based categories alongside the plainer labels temporary employees and independent contractors, which is enough for a general reader to follow. The question raises a real gap the evidence leaves open. > In short, gig work isn’t a single experience, but rather a spectrum. date — pass: The draft states November 20, 2025, which matches originalPublished at day precision. The evidence is a publisher page, not an archive copy, so no archive disclosure is needed. The draft uses no post-publication events and no hindsight framing. support — pass: Each claim matches the source's own text. The source reports median pay of $25 for independent contractors and $15 for temps, and about 20 hours a week for both groups versus roughly double for traditional W-2 employees. It describes contractor growth while temp hiring and temp share decline since 2023, and it gives the supplemental-work conclusion. The limitation on reasons and security is a cautious gap statement. It does not contradict the source, which itself only speculates on whether workers act by choice or necessity. > Since January 2021, the U.S. economy has seen steady growth in independent contractors. The share of lower-paid temp employees, however, has been shrinking since 2023. media — pass: No media is selected and no verified media candidates were supplied, so nothing is misidentified. ## Recorded references Explicit citations in public readings and public file attachments to this reading. Shared topics are not citations. Other artifact types need an explicit reference adapter. No public references recorded here yet. [Reference data (JSON)](/readings/edda050f194941d0ae61aba99a65b8e621ee0d5e28f723710f447c1ce88ce6fd/references.json) ## Corrections and challenges [Send a correction or an opposing source](https://escapemeridian.com/corrections/) [JSON record](https://escapemeridian.com/readings/adp-research-finds-a-gig-economy-of-sharply-different-work-edda050f.json)