Every day, the Instawork platform handles thousands of transactions involving businesses and hourly professionals, generating a huge amount of data on hourly pay as well as other aspects of the labor market. This report summarizes some of the major trends in demographics, roles, and worker constraints in regions across the United States.
To receive future economic insights from the Instawork Economic Research Division, please subscribe by visiting: https://hubs.li/Q012kZ--0
The data are also compiled into the Instawork Pay Signal Index (PSI) and indexed trends in hourly pay. Because businesses can book shifts in advance on the Instawork platform, the metrics include forward-looking data for the current month as well. Please refer to the appendix for explanations of the methods behind each metric.
Demand for hospitality roles was strong on the Instawork platform in August, but hourly pay for many front-of-house roles declined slightly. Overall, the data suggest that labor supply is finally catching up to demand in a sector that was deeply affected by the Covid-19 pandemic.
After a majority of businesses across all sectors on the Instawork platform raised pay in July, there was a small pullback in August that is expected to continue into September. If this happens, it would be the first time since January and February that a majority of businesses lowered pay for two straight months:
Our in-app surveys track Pros' labor market situations on a monthly basis. For details on methods and questionnaires, please see the Methodological Appendix below.
Here is the distribution of Pros by the jobs they worked up through the reference week (14 August 2023) this month:
Though work in most categories slipped in August, the share of Pros with no work also dropped slightly. Overall, during the past several months Pros' preferences for full-time and part-time work were fairly steady, while the shares looking for app-based and temporary work dipped:
In August, the share of Pros working 30 hours or fewer was at its lowest level in the past six months, with the biggest increase among Pros working 41-50 hours:
By contrast, preferences for hours dropped in August among Pros who were looking for 30 hours of work or less:
Overall, Pros were having an easier time finding the hours they wanted in August, with identical shares saying they wanted 21-30 and 31-40 hours of work to the shares of Pros who actually worked those hours.
In August we also asked Pros about their preferences for recurring shifts at the same businesses:
The vast majority of Pros wanted to work at least two to four shifts per week at the same business, with 55% saying they wanted at least a full week of shifts. These Pros are ideal for businesses that want to use an experienced group of flexible workers on a recurring basis to cover for employees taking time off, to reduce overtime, or as a pool of potential hires.
Trends that began early in the year resumed in August, with a lower share of men and a higher share of Black/African-American workers completing shifts via the Instawork platform:
Workers from racial and ethnic minorities have historically been among the first to feel a weakening in the labor market, and their supply of labor on the Instawork platform may indicate a narrowing of other options.
Hourly pay fell at the majority of businesses posting hospitality-related shifts in August, and this tendency may continue in September, according to advance bookings on the Instawork platform. A large majority of businesses posting shifts for building and grounds cleaning raised pay, but that number may turn around completely in September. The reverse looks set to occur in sales roles, which had been less volatile until now. Next month a majority of businesses may also lower pay for logistics shifts for the first time since May:
Hourly pay was steady in most roles during August but fell in almost all front-of-house hospitality roles, with the exception of bussers. Yet hourly pay for bussers looks set to decline in September. Pay for concession and stand workers, one of the fastest-growing roles on the Instawork platform in August, may increase substantially in September. Intermediate warehouse roles may also see a resumption in the upward trend for pay next month after a few months of stability:
