Freelancers Unite!- Rafael Espinal
I Make a Living
English - November 23, 2020 14:03 - 27 minutes - 25.4 MB - ★★★★★ - 76 ratingsEntrepreneurship Business Careers living make imakealiving freshbooks small business owners freelancers entrepreneurs self-employed freelancer career Homepage Download Apple Podcasts Google Podcasts Overcast Castro Pocket Casts RSS feed
Rafael Espinal knows freelancing. His parents both moonlighted—as a photographer and a baker—and as part of the New York City Council, he helped pass the “Freelance Isn’t Free Act,” which allows NYC-based freelancers to tap into city support in resolving delinquent client payments. He’s also the youngest person to be elected to the New York State Assembly, and a former teacher. Now, as Executive Director of the Freelancers Union, he spends his days helping freelancers get organized, big picture-style.
“I knew that at some point in my life, I wanted to be part of an organization that advocated for creatives and freelance workers,” says Rafael, and the Freelancers Union does exactly that: they got started by offering insurance to workers outside traditional employment set-ups. They’ve since grown to include a networking hub, a popular blog, a directory of Black Freelancers, and service discounts for members. This week, we talk to Rafael about why COVID-19 hits them especially hard, why freelancing is an unexpected youth movement, and why freelancers definitely have power in numbers.
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