E-lancing, also known as e-labour, is the practice of taking freelancing work through online job offers. E-lancing websites are hubs where employers place tasks, which freelancers from around the world bid for. Some e-lancing websites act as intermediaries for payment, paying the freelancer directly after work is completed, to mitigate the risk of non-payment. Employers posting work on these websites set the price they are willing to pay for the task being done.
History
In 2012, 1.56 million people were freelancers in the United Kingdom, a rise of 11.9% since 2008. Sebastian Trenner of the World Bank wrote in 2012 that online marketplaces were unlikely to produce a significant decrease in skilled unemployment. Conversely, Karsten Geis of Empirica Capital wrote in 2014 that e-lancing would be a primary employer of the future, and that normal jobs will tend to disappear.
Notable e-lancing websites include Fiverr, Freelancer.com, Guru.com, Upwork, and 99designs.