0 the state of not working for an employer but finding work for yourself or having your own business:
Many people like the flexibility of self-employment.
1 the fact of having your own business or finding work for yourself, rather than working for an employer:
It can be hypothesized that self-employment will increase in the future as a result of changes in technology and the organization of production.
In the 1990s there was an explosion of self-employment.
Someone who earned $20,000 from a job or self-employment, for example, would lose $4,180 in benefits.
Laid-off workers are much less likely to be rehired by their old companies and have to find new jobs or turn to self-employment.
One reason is related to trends in the labour market towards self-employment and greater flexibility, which mean that more social risks are met individually.
Much self-employment and female employment is characterised by low pay and periodic spells of unemployment.
As a result self-employment sharply decreased : while in 1960 there were 150,000 self-employed craftsmen, their number had been reduced to 10,000 by 1973.
At the same time a distinct minority type of household existed which drew its main income from self-employment.
