上一代人以前的美国，如果听到朋友谈起一次临时的工作，你的朋友很有可能是位音乐家。
But the phrase has now evolved to describe different methods of short-term work. Self-employment, contract or freelance work, temporary jobs – just
但这一说法现在已经用于形容各种不同的短期工作。自主创业、外包工作或自由职业、临时性工作 —— 一切非全职工作，都可以被称为零工。
The rise of the gig economy came along with the evolution of on-demand or “as-needed” hiring. Digital ordering, stock management, sales and expenses programs have made large teams of full-time staff a thing of the past, with some companies taking on temporary workers as and when they need them. As employers slice and *dice at their *payrolls, some even *outsource entire departments to third-party providers.
随着按需雇佣的不断发展，零工经济也随之兴起。电子下单、库存管理以及销售与开支的程序令大型的全职工作团队成了过去式，一些公司只在有需要的时候招募临时员工。雇主们不断将工资总支出分割成小块，一些雇主甚至还将整个部门外包给第三方供应商。
For a while, the gig trend was seen as a temporary response to the Great Recession. *Casualties of *downsizing took on “as-needed” jobs or tried to make a go of entrepreneurship because that’s all that was available. They hoped that “permanent” hiring would return as the overall economy recovered.
零工潮曾在一段时间内被视作应对经济大萧条的权宜之计。受裁员影响的人们接起了“按需工作”的活儿，或者试着创办企业，因为那是他们能做的一切。人们希望整体经济恢复以后，“固定性”雇佣也将随之回归。
However, this did not happen on the scale they hoped.
然而，这一切并没有如他们所愿地大规模出现。
This shift means that driving for ride-sharing services like Uber and Lyft has become one of the most common new jobs in the US.
这样的转变意味着优步、来福车一类的拼车服务司机成为了美国最常见的新工作之一。
And surveys find that many gig-economy workers are happy with their new roles, with the hourly pay maybe even better than what they earned as “permanent” employees. They may enjoy work-hour flexibility that’s perfect for their family or education needs. And they may even find they’re good at being their own boss.
调查发现，许多零工经济的雇员对于他们的新角色感到满意，他们的时薪或许比先前作为“固定”员工时挣得还要多。他们或许十分享受工作时间的灵活性，这点对他们的家庭及教育需求而言堪称完美。他们或许还会发现，自己很擅长做自己的老板。
That said, however, self-employment isn’t for everyone. Some workers need their duties and hours to be *dictated; they’re not self-starters or can’t identify gig opportunities and follow them through.
然而即便如此，自谋职业也并不适合所有人。一些员工需要他人来为自己规定职责和工作时间；他们并非做事积极主动的人，或者无法找到零工机会，并且坚持到底。
Gigs are also not likely to provide traditional benefits such as *subsidized healthcare insurance, and aren’t likely to come with retirement plans, although this may not be an issue for those with a well-developed financial discipline.
零工也并不大可能提供如医疗保险补贴等传统福利，也不太可能会有养老金计划，尽管这点对于有着发达财政纪律的国家而言并没有什么问题。
But the message for a big sector of the workforce is that many who’ve transitioned to the gig economy – out of choice or out of desperation – often say they can’t imagine returning to a “real” job.
但传递给大部分劳动力的信息是，许多转移至零工经济的人 —— 不论是出于自我选择还是别无他法 —— 都经常表示，无法想象自己回归到“真正”的工作中去。
If they’ve positioned themselves in an industry or occupation that has a need for what they do, they often find they’re making more money than they did as employees. A high demand often means high pay.
如果这些人所处的行业或是工作对他们所做的事有需求，那么他们能经常发现，自己挣的钱比当雇员时还要多。高需求经常意味着高薪酬。
Yes, the *inconsistency of gigs can be scary. But, really, who doesn’t like an adventure?
是的，零工的不稳定性很可怕，但说实话，谁不喜欢来场大冒险呢？
