A new study shows more people are freelancing by choice.

mike kravinsky

photo by Egan Snow

This is one of those trends that I have mixed feelings about. A survey done by the freelancer website Elance, finds that more people are choosing freelance work over traditional full time jobs.

This trend apparently has nothing to do with the current job market, workers just say their happier. They have more flexibility to work the schedules tha they want.

Gigaom has more results from the survey:

More than 60 percent said they would prefer to remain a freelancer rather than take a full-time job. Over 60 percent also said their income has increased in the last year. According to the Elance report, the economic downturn is no longer the primary force driving professionals to start a freelance career. Less than 5 percent of those surveyed said they were working as a freelancer until they could find a full-time job, and less than 25 percent said they became freelancers after a layoff. Over half of those who responded to the survey said they began freelancing to be their own boss and work on projects they loved.

As someone who has had the luxury of working full time in the same job for years, there is something really nice about having a regular paycheck, benefits, paid vacations etc.

I understand the concept of having a more flexible work schedule, but, in the long run, although it probably helps the employers bottom line by not having any responsibility to the people that work for them, it doesn't do much for a freelancers long term savings, health care and an occasional paid vacation. Ultimately, a worker may have to continue to carry on long after they'd like to retire to keep those self financed benefits going.

We'll see if those people feel the same way as the economy recovers and employers start hiring again.