FDU Poll Finds Voters Strongly Favor New Benefit Requirements for App Workers

For immediate Release September 12, 2024

Voters Strongly Favor New Benefit Requirements for App Workers

Nearly two-thirds of voters support app-based workers remaining independent contractors; requiring new benefit plans cuts support for forcing workers to be employees

Fairleigh Dickinson University, Madison, NJ, September 12, 2024 – Opinions about whether app-based workers should be treated as employees are highly politicized, but American voters overwhelmingly support requiring app-based companies to offer benefit plans to their workers. According to questions sponsored by DoorDash in the FDU Poll’s recent national survey of registered voters, a requirement that app-based companies offer workers benefit accounts is both very popular and reduces support for treating those workers as employees.

“This is what political scientists call a hard issue, because it involves trade-offs between important values,” said Dan Cassino, a professor of Government and Politics at Fairleigh Dickinson, and the Executive Director of the poll. “Voters generally want workers to be treated well, and they don’t want to over regulate companies, and app-based workers are testing what that balance should look like.”

“These results echo what we’ve heard time and time again from people who earn with platforms like DoorDash: they want access to benefits that they may be missing, without sacrificing the freedom and flexibility that draws them to this work in the first place,” said Max Rettig, Head of Public Policy at DoorDash. “It’s clear that our laws simply haven’t kept up with the way people want to work today, but we don’t need to settle for the status quo. Voters across the country — and across the political spectrum — are sending a resounding message that they agree, and policymakers should take note as they consider what the future of work looks like.”

Under such plans, workers would receive a percent of their earnings in an account that could be used to purchase health insurance, put towards a retirement plan, or towards other benefits, at the direction of the worker. DoorDash is currently piloting this kind of initiative in Pennsylvania, with about 4,400 workers already taking advantage of this opportunity.

To measure support for the proposed benefit plans (often referred to as “flexible” or “portable” benefit plans), voters were asked a series of three questions. The first question explained that workers for app-based companies are currently treated as independent contractors and laid out costs and benefits for treating them as employees instead, before asking how they feel about the issue. The second question explained the concept of the benefit accounts, asking if they support requiring companies to offer such plans. The third question re-asks the first question, with the benefit plan requirement as an additional option.

A majority of voters across both parties look positively on the proposal to require companies to offer benefit plans to independent workers. Fifty-nine percent of registered voters say that they support such a requirement, and while Democrats (71 percent) are more likely to do so than Republicans (51 percent), and younger voters (70 percent of voters 30 and under) more than older voters (53 percent among those 65 and up), it’s popular across the board.

Making benefit accounts available to independent contractors also changed voter preferences towards the employment status of app-based workers. When just asked about how these workers should be considered under employment law, a strong plurality (49 percent) initially say that app-based workers should continue to be treated as independent contractors, 17 points higher than the 32 percent saying that they should be treated as employees instead. Support for treating these workers as employees is also highly differentiated across party lines, with Democrats (43 percent) being much more likely than Republicans (23 percent) to support such a change.

However, when the benefit accounts are included as an option for how workers should be treated, one third of registered voters (34 percent) prefer it to the status quo or to treating the workers as employees, while an additional 32 percent say that the workers should continue to be treated as independent contractors, collectively representing 66 percent of voters favoring maintaining independent contractor status. Just 21 percent – down from 32 percent in the first question – say that they should be treated as employees. This shift comes largely from Democrats, who were the most likely to support treating the workers as employees in the first place.

“Especially on relatively unfamiliar issues like this, voters are looking for a middle ground,” said Cassino. “More liberal voters respond to the idea of requiring companies to do something for their workers, and if it means that they don’t have to change things too much, all the better.”

Methodology

The survey was conducted between August 17 and August 20, 2024, using a voter list of registered voters nationwide carried out by Braun Research of Princeton, New Jersey. Respondents were contacted via either live caller telephone interviews, or text-to-web surveys sent to cellular phones, resulting in an overall sample of 801 registered voters nationally. 520 of the surveys were carried out via live caller telephone interviews to landlines (30%) and cellphones (70%) and the remainder (281) were done on a web platform via weblinks sent via SMS to cell phones. Surveys were conducted only in English.

The data were weighted to be representative of the population of voters in the 2020 US Presidential Election, according to data from AP VoteCast. The weights used, like all weights, balance the demographic characteristics of the sample to match known population parameters. The weighted results used here are balanced to match parameters for sex, age, education and race/ethnicity.

SPSSINC RAKE, an SPSS extension module that simultaneously balances the distributions of all variables using the GENLOG procedure, was used to produce final weights. Weights were trimmed to prevent individual interviews from having too much influence on the final results. The use of these weights in statistical analysis helps to ensure that the demographic characteristics of the sample approximate the demographic characteristics of the target population. The size of these weights is used to construct the measure of design effects, which indicate the extent to which the reported results are being driven by the weights applied to the data, rather than found in the data itself. Simply put, these design effects tell us how many additional respondents would have been needed to get the weighted number of respondents across weighted categories: larger design effects indicate greater levels of under-representation in the data. In this case, calculated design effects are approximately 1.3, largely driven by the weights used on the race/ethnicity variable.

All surveys are subject to sampling error, which is the expected probable difference between interviewing everyone in a population versus a scientific sampling drawn from that population. Sampling error should be adjusted to recognize the effect of weighting the data to better match the population. In this poll, the simple sampling error for 801 registered voters is +/-3.5 percentage points, at a 95 percent confidence interval. Including the design effects, the margin of error would be +/-4.6 percentage points, though the figure not including them is much more commonly reported.

This error calculation does not take into account other sources of variation inherent in public opinion studies, such as non-response, question wording, differences in translated forms, or context effects. While such errors are known to exist, they are often unquantifiable within a particular survey, and all efforts, such as randomization and extensive pre-testing of items, have been used to minimize them.

The FDU Poll is a member of the AAPOR Transparency Initiative and is devoted to ensuring that our results are presented in such a way that anyone can quickly and easily get all of the information that they may need to evaluate the validity of our surveys. We believe that transparency is the key to building trust in the work of high-quality public opinion research, and necessary to push our industry forward.

Weighted Telephone Sample Characteristics

801 Registered Voters Nationally

Figures do not include individuals who declined to answer demographic items.

Man

48% N = 380

Woman

52% N = 412

Some Other Way

>1% N = 7

18-30

17% N = 136

31-44

23% N = 184

45-64

38% N = 304

65+

22% N = 176

White

67% N = 526

Black

13% N = 102

Hispanic/Latino/a

13% N = 102

Asian

4% N = 31

Other/Multi-racial

3% N = 24

No college degree

59% N = 468

College degree or more

41% N = 326

Question Wording and Order

First off, we’d like to ask you a few questions about the upcoming Presidential Election

P1. Which of the following would you say are important to your vote in November? For each one, just say if you think it’s important or not.

[All respondents get five of these. One third of respondents get A-E, shuffled. Another third get 4 of A-E, in shuffled order, with F as the last one. The Last third get 4 of A-E, in shuffled order, with G as the last one]

Foreign Policy
Immigration Policy
Abortion
Climate Change
Tax Policy
[One third of respondents get this option] The Race or Ethnicity of the Candidate
[One third of respondents get this option] Whether the Candidate is a Man or a Woman

P2. [Shuffle order of top candidates] In November’s Presidential election, do you intend to vote for Kamala [COMMA-lah] Harris, the Democrat, Donald Trump, the Republican, for someone else, or do you not plan on voting?

Kamala [COMMA-lah] Harris, the Democrat
Donald Trump, the Republican
Someone else
Not going to vote
[Vol] Don’t know/ Refused

P3. In the US today, do you feel that you can openly express your social and political opinions, that you can express your opinions sometimes, or do you have to be careful not to express your opinions?

I can only express my opinions
I can only sometimes express my opinions
I have to be careful not to express my opinions
[Vol] Don’t Know/Refused

P4. How commonly do you see your views about social and political issues represented in the media?

Often
Sometimes
Rarely
Never
[Vol] Don’t Know/Refused

P5. Regardless of where you get your news about politics and current events, which of these sources of information do you consider to be trustworthy?

[You can pick as many as you like]

Local newspapers
National Newspapers like the New York Times or Washington Post
Local TV News
National TV News
CNN
MSNBC
Fox News
Other Cable News Channels
Social Media

P6. Gender roles in the US have been changing rapidly, and we’d like to hear what you think about how men should act today. For each of the following statements, tell me whether you strongly agree or disagree, agree or disagree but not strongly, or have no opinion.

Strongly Agree
Agree
No opinion
Disagree
Strongly Disagree
[Vol] Don’t know/ Refused

Men should watch football games instead of soap operas
Boys should prefer to play with trucks rather than dolls.
A man should always be the boss
I think a young man should try to be physically tough, even if he’s not big.
Men should not be too quick to tell others that they care about them

[Intervening questions held for later release]

Now, we’d like to ask you a few questions about the gig economy.

DD1. Currently, there is a debate about how app-based workers, like rideshare and delivery drivers, should be treated by the government. They are currently treated as independent contractors, who can set their own hours, but aren’t subject to rules that protect employees, like minimum wage laws.

Some people say that being independent contractors gives them more flexibility to work when and how they want for multiple companies. Other people say that companies should be required to treat them as employees, which would give them some legal protections, and some benefits.

What do you think? Should app-based workers be considered as independent contractors, like they are now, or should companies be required to treat them as employees?

Independent contractors
Employees
[Vol] Not Sure/Don’t Know
[Vol] Refused

DD2. Because they are independent contractors, app-based workers don’t have access to benefits, like health insurance and retirement plans, that employees often get. There have been proposals to require companies to put some money into flexible benefit accounts which would let many of these workers get such benefits without being classified as employees. Would you support or oppose such proposals?

Support requiring companies to establish such benefit accounts
Oppose requiring companies to establish such benefit accounts
[Vol] Not Sure/Don’t Know
[Vol] Refused

DD3. Given the option of these flexible benefit accounts, how do you think the government should treat app-based workers that are currently treated as independent contractors? If you had to choose one, do you think that they should:

Remain independent contractors
Remain independent contractors, but that companies should be required to put money into flexible benefit accounts
Be classified as employees
[Vol] Not Sure/Don’t Know
[Vol] Refused

Demos

Just a few more questions, for statistical purposes

D1. In politics today, do you consider yourself a Democrat, Republican, Independent, or something else?

Democrat
Republican
Independent [ASK D1A]
Something Else/Other
DK/Ref [vol]

D1A. [Ask only if D1 is 3] Which way do you lean?

Democrat
Republican
Independent
Something Else/Other
DK/Ref [vol]

D1B. In addition, which of the following terms would you use to describe your political views? You can choose as many as you like. [Shuffle Order]

Liberal
Moderate
Conservative
Socialist
Progressive
Libertarian
Make America Great Again or MAGA
Nationalist

D2A. To ensure we are reaching people of all ages, would you please tell me your age?

____ (ENTER AGE: 98=98+, 99 = REFUSED)

[IF Don’t Know/REFUSED IN QD1, ASK:]

D2B. Would you be willing to tell us whether it’s between…?

Under 30
31 to 44
45 to 64
65 or over
[Refused]

D3. What was the last grade in school you completed? [CODE TO LIST]

Did not complete High School
High School Diploma or equivalent
Vocational or Trade School
Some college, but no degree
Associates, or other 2 year degree
Bachelor’s Degree
Graduate work, such as Law, MBA, Medical School, or similar
Refused (VOL)

D4. How would you describe your sex? Do you describe yourself as …

A Man
A Woman
Some other way
[DK/REF]

D5. How would you describe your racial and ethnic background? You can pick as many as you’d like.

White
Black
Asian
Hispanic/Latino/a/Spanish
Other or Multi-Racial
[Dk/Ref]

Have you ever used financial trading programs or apps, like RobinHood or ETrade to buy and sell stocks, options, forex or cryptocurrency on your own, without using a broker or financial advisor?

Yes
No
[Vol] Don’t Know/Refused

D6. Have you ever owned any cryptocurrency, NFTs, or other similar digital products? It’s fine if you don’t know what those are.

Yes
No
Don’t know what those are
[Refused]

D7. The traits that we see as being masculine or feminine are largely determined by society, and have changed dramatically over time. As a result, everyone has some combination of masculine and feminine traits, which may or may not correspond with whether they’re male or female. How do you see yourself? Would you say that you see yourself as…

Completely Masculine
Mostly Masculine
Slightly Masculine
Slightly Feminine
Mostly Feminine
Completely Feminine
[Dk/Ref]

Thanks so much for your participation – you’ll see the results in the news in the next few weeks

Release Tables

Should app-based workers be considered as independent contractors, like they are now, or should companies be required to treat them as employees?
	All	Dem	Indp	Rep
Independent Contractors	49%	39%	50%	61%
Employees	32%	43%	29%	23%
Don’t Know/ Not Sure [Vol]	18%	17%	19%	16%
Refused [Vol]	1%	1%	3%	–

Should app-based workers be considered as independent contractors, like they are now, or should companies be required to treat them as employees?
	All	White	Non-White	Men	Women
Independent Contractors	49%	50%	46%	54%	44%
Employees	32%	29%	40%	33%	32%
Don’t Know/ Not Sure [Vol]	18%	20%	14%	12%	23%
Refused [Vol]	1%	1%	0%	1%	1%

Should app-based workers be considered as independent contractors, like they are now, or should companies be required to treat them as employees?
	All	18-30	31-44	45-64	65+
Independent Contractors	49%	42%	40%	58%	47%
Employees	32%	35%	38%	27%	33%
Don’t Know/ Not Sure [Vol]	18%	21%	20%	14%	19%
Refused [Vol]	1%	1%	2%	1%	1%

There have been proposals to require companies to put some money into flexible benefit accounts which would let many of these workers get such benefits without being classified as employees. Would you support or oppose such proposals?
	All	Dem	Indp	Rep
Support Requiring Companies	59%	71%	43%	51%
Oppose Requiring Companies	24%	16%	30%	33%
Don’t Know/ Not Sure [Vol]	16%	13%	26%	15%
Refused [Vol]	1%	0%	2%	0%

There have been proposals to require companies to put some money into flexible benefit accounts which would let many of these workers get such benefits without being classified as employees. Would you support or oppose such proposals?
	All	White	Non-White	Men	Women
Support Requiring Companies	59%	54%	68%	58%	60%
Oppose Requiring Companies	24%	27%	21%	28%	22%
Don’t Know/ Not Sure [Vol]	16%	18%	11%	14%	18%
Refused [Vol]	1%	1%	–	1%	1%

There have been proposals to require companies to put some money into flexible benefit accounts which would let many of these workers get such benefits without being classified as employees. Would you support or oppose such proposals?
	All	18-30	31-44	45-64	65+
Support Requiring Companies	59%	70%	66%	54%	53%
Oppose Requiring Companies	24%	16%	15%	30%	31%
Don’t Know/ Not Sure [Vol]	16%	14%	19%	15%	15%
Refused [Vol]	1%	1%	1%	1%	1%

Should app-based workers be considered as independent contractors, like they are now, or should companies be required to treat them as employees?
	All	Dem	Indp	Rep
Remain Independent Contractors	32%	21%	41%	43%
Independent, but get FBAs	34%	40%	28%	30%
Employees	21%	27%	13%	15%
Don’t Know/ Not Sure [Vol]	12%	11%	15%	11%
Refused [Vol]	1%	–	2%	1%

Should app-based workers be considered as independent contractors, like they are now, or should companies be required to treat them as employees?
	All	White	Non-White	Men	Women
Remain Independent Contractors	32%	34%	28%	38%	28%
Independent, but get FBAs	34%	33%	36%	33%	36%
Employees	21%	18%	26%	21%	20%
Don’t Know/ Not Sure [Vol]	12%	13%	10%	7%	17%
Refused [Vol]	1%	1%	–	1%	1%

Should app-based workers be considered as independent contractors, like they are now, or should companies be required to treat them as employees?
	All	18-30	31-44	45-64	65+
Remain Independent Contractors	32%	26%	23%	39%	34%
Independent, but get FBAs	34%	38%	39%	30%	35%
Employees	21%	25%	23%	19%	17%
Don’t Know/ Not Sure [Vol]	12%	11%	14%	11%	13%
Refused [Vol]	1%	–	1%	1%	1%