The number of self-employed people is increasing in many countries of the world. There are various reasons behind this, such as: opportunities, preference of working independently, rise of remote work culture etc. I personally think of this as a positive development, but this comes with some negative aspects too.
Due to the globalization and digitization of the world, remote work has become more feasible than ever. People now have the opportunity to work from their preferred location, adjust their schedules to their convenience and work on their own terms. In newer generations, people have been looking for more freedom in career opportunities, which the traditional hierarchy of corporations doesn’t provide. So when given the opportunity, people sometimes choose to either become entrepreneurs or independently freelance for a company. But not everyone that chooses this path ends up succeeding due to uncertainities related to consumers and earnings. Therefore, self-employed people don’t have the stability that the regular employees working for a salary has.
Whether this trend is positive or negative depends on how the economy handles this shift and how well people can adapt. As of now, I think this is a positive development. People choosing independence and valuing self-respect can force companies to make better policies, treat their employees better and stop corporate greed. Rise of entrepreneurship, small businesses can also stop capitalistic monopoly, making the market fairer for everyone. On the other hand, fully dissolving hierarchies and a scarcity of potential employees, can cause the collapse of sectors (e.g. medical, factories) that cannot be replaced by self-employment.
Overall, I think the rising number of self-employed is a positive development. Although it has both positive and negative aspects, the ultimate consequence will depend on how unbalanced the scale gets and how the economy gets affected.