MARCH 2024  17 
Most voters in Illinois don’t see a problem with the way independent 
contracting jobs are currently handled in their state, and there is 
support across the board for protecting the right for independent 
contractors to work these kinds of jobs because of the flexibility they 
provide. As a result, voters in the state oppose potential changes that 
would reclassify independent contractors as employees. Voters also 
see real potential for these rule changes to cause significant harm, 
not just to the financial wellbeing of independent contractors, but to 
the state as a whole.
	
Just 21% of Illinois voters believe the way independent contract­
ing jobs are currently handled is an issue that needs to be addressed 
by the government. This view is shared across partisan lines, in­
cluding just 31% of Democrats, 17% of Independents, and 10% of 
Republicans who want to see the government intervene.
	
Less than 4-in-10 voters would support reclassifying indepen­
dent contractors as employees (38% support / 47% oppose / 14% 
don’t know). The 14% of voters in the state who currently work as 
independent contractors oppose being reclassied as employees the 
most strongly (63%) and the 40% of voters that have had some previ­
ous experience working as independent contractors are also opposed 
outright (55%), but even those who have no experience working as 
independent contractors are divided (41% support / 42% oppose). 
By double-digit margins, current independent contractors are also 
the least likely to agree that the Governor, State Legislature, or local 
officials listen to their concerns about employment issues.
	
Voters believe that reclassifying independent contractors as 
employees would ultimately hurt the state’s economy, cost jobs, and 
result in independent contractors making less. By a 34-point margin, 
voters believe that reclassifying independent contractors as employ­
ees would cost jobs in Illinois, believe it would decrease pay for inde­
pendent contractors by a 27-point margin, and by a 24-point margin 
believe it would hurt the state’s economy.
	
Independent contractors are just as satisfied with their current 
employment situation as full-time employees. 65% of current inde­
pendent contractors say they are satisfied with their current employ­
ment compared to 64% of current employees, and current indepen­
dent contractors are more likely to be extremely satisfied (40%) with 
their employment situation than full-time employees (34%).
These findings are based on the 
results of a multi-modal poll 
of registered voters in Illinois 
conducted by Impact Research. 
The sample consists of N=600 
responses, collected utilizing 
landline, cellphone, and text-to-
web interviews between August 
3-9, 2023. The margin of error 
for a sample of this size is +/- 4.0 
percentage points at the 95% level of 
confidence.
March 4, 2024
To: Interested Parties
Fr: Brian Stryker, Luke Martin, 
and Cassie Castro; 
Impact Research 
Re: Illinois Voters Oppose 
Changes to Independent 
Contractor Rules
Independent Contractor Survey

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