Pay equity remains nonexistent for many women, even those who work independently and charge their own rates.
As gig work becomes the norm in many fields, freelancing women make significantly less than men — just 79 cents for every dollar a male freelancer makes, new data shows.
Researchers at OnDeck, a personal finance company, in February analyzed the hourly rates of 9,078 freelancers across the U.S. who used the platform Upwork to bill more than 100 hours.
Overall, across a variety of industries, men charged an average hourly rate of $75.44, while women charged $59.70. The pay gap is most pronounced in the writing and translation industry, where male legal writers charged $181.25 an hour while women charged only $73.88.
Freelancers play a pivotal role in supporting the growth and success of small businesses, according to Matt Pelkey, senior lead content strategist at OnDeck. Examining the data on pay disparities between men and women within the industry “is crucial for recognizing, addressing, and ultimately reducing inequalities in pay,” he added.
In freelance work, which is a form of self-employment, workers commit to short-term projects and charge companies fees for their services. Interest in so-called gig work is more popular than ever post-pandemic, research confirms. According to MBO Partners, the number of full-time freelancers between 2020 and 2023 grew by 91%, while occasional freelancers grew by 132%. As of this year, there are an estimated 76.4 million freelancers in the U.S., and by 2028 the rate is expected to increase to 90 million, according to Exploding Topics, a searchable online database.
The OnDeck survey found that pay disparities existed in all states except Delaware, where freelancing women were paid $13.83 an hour more than men, the data shows. Freelancing women throughout the U.S. made the most in the creative and design industry, with fields like videography paying them an hourly average of $121.67 — which is $47.42 more an hour than men performing the same job. Other job titles where women out-earned men include resume and cover letter writing, brand strategy, training and development, and database development, the data revealed.
While OnDeck’s researchers didn’t uncover exact reasons for the disparities in pay, some experts believe that women may not have a sense of what they should charge, while others struggle to ask for the amount they deserve, an Independent article noted.
Having a better understanding of this gender pay gap “equips both businesses and freelancers to advocate for fair compensation practices, ensuring freelancers are compensated based on their skills, experience and contributions rather than their gender,” Pelkey said.
And unfortunately, this data only confirms a message many women know too well: pay inequality is still a big problem. The next major question: how do we fix it?
