Transactions on the Instawork platform track the wages paid to hourly workers and the total cost of their shifts to local businesses. This briefing focuses on costs to businesses for dozens of occupations in regions across the United States, in parallel with the Employer Costs for Employee Compensation (ECEC) release from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Data used in this briefing may include data on future shifts that have been booked on the Instawork platform but have not yet taken place.
Costs for line cooks, event servers, and bussers rose across the country by an average of 1.5% or more between March 2022 and June 2022. These changes may reflect labor demand due to the shift from goods to services in consumer spending. Costs for general labor rose 5% or more in the Austin, Jacksonville, Minneapolis, and Nashville areas. Costs for entry-level warehouse associates rose by 7% or more in Chicago, Miami, New York, and Seattle – the first major increase for this position since last fall, possibly driven by high inflation in urban areas. Indeed, costs in these metro areas rose in at least two-thirds of all roles on the Instawork platform.
Here are the biggest increases in costs from March 2022 to June 2022 by role and region:
RoleRegionIncreaseWarehouse / Entry LevelMiami17%Counter Staff / CashierSeattle17%General LaborMinneapolis13%Prep CookSeattle11%Event ServerSan Diego11%General LaborNashville9%Warehouse / Entry LevelNew York9%Event ServerSacramento9%Warehouse / Entry LevelChicago8%General LaborAustin7%
Here are shares of roles where business costs increased in major metropolitan areas:
Here are the shares of regions where business costs rose for a selection of roles:
We will continue to track these changes in business costs in the quarters to come. We welcome your suggestions for additions to this briefing.
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