The study, conducted by Approve.io – the creators of a client-approval tool for freelance creatives, revealed:

  • 49% of freelancers have suffered from work-related anxiety this year

  • 75% of those say their anxiety was caused by client conduct, with late payment, unreasonable requests and asking for free work among causes

  • 28% of those aged 18-24 say being asked to work for free was the top cause of anxiety

  • 70% of all freelancers say they’ve been asked to work free* in the last 12 months

  • 5% of freelancers have been ‘ghosted’ by a client, meaning the client cut off all communication without explanation

Three quarters of freelancers who experienced work-related anxiety in the past 12 months say that client conduct is one of the reasons behind the problem. Women (77%) were marginally more likely to suffer from client induced-anxiety than men (73%).

And 13% of those citing client conduct as a cause of anxiety said being asked to work for free was their top cause of anxiety.

This particular issue was significantly more likely to affect younger freelancers, with more than a quarter (28%) of freelancers aged 18-24 suffering from client-driven anxiety citing it as their top cause of anxiety.

Top causes of client-induced anxiety among freelancers

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One participant in the study, a freelance user-experience designer and photographer from Manchester explained that larger clients take advantage of the enthusiasm some freelancers have for building a portfolio.

“It’s so tempting to consider requests to work on-spec because of the ever-present promise of future work. It feels like saying “no thank you” shuts the door on potential future work.

“The possibility of regretting the decision either way causes anxiety for me whenever it comes up, but I’m saying no to any client that would profit from my free work.”

Entitlement

CooperOccupational health expert, Sir Cary Cooper CBE, professor of organisational psychology & health at the ALLIANCE Manchester Business School, University of Manchester, believes being asked to work on-spec represents a no-win situation for freelancers and their mental health.

“I think this is a serious problem. It’s natural for freelancers to look to build relationships with potential clients, and working on-spec is tempting when the client dangles the carrot of future commissions. But it rarely works out the way the freelancer expects and it can lead to a broad lowering of demand for experienced, but comparatively expensive, professionals.”

“Some businesses, especially those in glamorous or competitive industries, do suffer with a sense of entitlement. They appear to believe that having their name on your portfolio is payment enough for a young, inexperienced freelancer.”

The trends revealed in the study suggest that younger freelancers are struggling to balance their need for financial security with the need for building a sustainable client base.

Charlotte Whelan, who co-ordinated the Approve.io study, believes businesses, as well as freelancers, will suffer if freelancing becomes a race to the bottom.

“Aside from the ethics of requesting free labour, businesses are doing themselves no favours by attempting to get work done on-spec. Our study has shown that this sort of conduct could be driving freelancers away from independent employment and into traditional employment. Bad news for lots of us.

“Our business relies on the talents of freelance developers, designers and copywriters. We know that if they’re go in-house, we’ll suffer from their absence, so we like to pay them with actual money, not intangible offers of ‘exposure’ or ‘experience’. Otherwise they’d be unable to sustain their livelihoods and we wouldn’t have the benefit of their talents.

Top causes of freelancer anxiety (overall)

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