Nearly 1 in 3 people doing gig work say it has been their main job over the past year, according to new research

• Nearly 1 in 3 current or recent gig workers say it has been their main job this past year, Pew says.
• Nearly 60% of gig workers said income from these jobs has been key for meeting their basic needs.

A new research report illustrates just how much many people rely on gig work as their main source of income, not just as a side hustle, as it is often branded.

Thirty-one percent of current or recent gig workers, or 3% of US adults overall, said the work they did for gig platforms was their main job in the past year, according to a new Pew Research Center report on the state of gig work in 2021.

More than 10,000 US adults participated in the survey.

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Among current or recent gig workers with lower incomes, 42% said gig work was their main job this past year. This represents 7% of all adults with lower incomes, the report said. Pew defined current or recent gig workers as people who had earned money on online gig platforms in the last 12 months.

The report also included other findings that show how important gig work is to many people's livelihoods. Fifty-eight percent of people who worked on online gig platforms in the last 12 months said the money was essential or important for meeting their basic needs. Thirty-nine percent considered the money nice to have but not necessary.

The research also found that, on the whole, gig workers see their experiences earning money through these platforms in a positive light in most areas, except benefits. While roughly two-thirds of current or recent gig workers consider these companies fair in terms of pay, nearly half view the companies as unfair when it comes to benefits. More than one-third of people who had ever done gig work reported sometimes or often feeling unsafe while on the job, and nearly one-fifth reported being sexually harassed while working.