Part
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Part
01
1099 Demographics (Median Data)
According to the IRS, the 1099 form applies to independent contractors, who are also referred to as self-employed workers. This is the category of workers who do not have an employer-employee relationship.
Based on the research findings, US self-employed workers who were 65 or older comprised the largest share (24.1%) of all self-employed workers. The median annual income of incorporated self-workers was $49,204, while it was $22,209 for unincorporated workers. According to the latest statistics found, both married men and women (with spouse present) were the highest share of self-employees at 14.1% and 9.1% respectively.
background and methodology
The number of self-employed workers in the US reached 40.9 million in 2017. There are two types of self-employed workers. Incorporated self-employed workers have "created their own corporate identity in the form of a limited liability corporation." Unincorporated self-employed workers are those who are not working through such an entity. Based on the latest government statistics, 36.6% of the total population of self-employed people were incorporated while the remaining 63.4% were unincorporated workers.
The US demographic statistics on 1099 workers have been extracted from government databases, such as the Bureau of Labour Statistics, in all instances except where recent data was not available. In such cases, other credible sources such as industry research reports were referred to in order to find the relevant information.
Demographics of 1099 WORKERS IN THE US
age
According to the latest available Bureau of Labour Statistics from 2015, the age breakdown of self-employed workers is as follows. It shows the total percentage of the unincorporated and incorporated self-employed workers based on the annual average. Precise information on the median age was unavailable.
Annual income
According to a 2017 research report by MBO Partners, the average income of a full-time US independent worker (i.e self-employed) was $65,300. Although the median income is not reported, it states that about 1 in 5 full-time independents (about 3.2 million) earn more than $100,000 annually.
Despite extensive searching, I was not able to find recent data for 1099 (self-employed) workers. The latest available figure was from the SBA which shows that in 2014, the median income of incorporated self-employed workers was $49,204, while for unincorporated workers it was $22,209.
Marital status
Between 1975 and 1995, the number of self-employed married women was twice that of single women (8% vs 4%). However, information on this topic was scarce. The latest information I was able to find was from 2012 by the Bureau of Labour Statistics.