Once upon a time – 19 months ago, to be exact – we boot-strapped a company to create the change we wanted to see in the way work is done within the marketing and advertising industry. We Are Rosie started as a response to the influx of high-quality, diverse marketing professionals who are consistently moving from traditional employment to independent and freelance consulting. Our mission was simple. We wanted to be the bridge between this rapidly expanding workforce of remote talent and the worldwide brand marketers and agencies seeking brilliant contractors and project-based teams across strategy, media, creative and all the other amazing things we do in marketing.
So here we are, 19 months in, with over 2,200 consultants in our community, and a growing roster of clients who are taking the leap into hiring consultants for project-based work. Our innovative approach has allowed us to guide marketing teams as they think about work in a more fluid and flexible way. Being a part of the process itself is truly rewarding, and we’ve learned so much in just over a year and a half.
The biggest lesson we learned? Sometimes, the things that we view as a no-brainer here at We Are Rosie, don’t actually exist in our industry…yet. Case in point: benefits. With all of these trailblazing independent marketers performing top-notch work for brands of all sizes and across every vertical, benefits are a must. Yet, access to healthcare still remains the biggest barrier preventing full-time employees from making the jump to independent consulting – and, frankly, that’s not okay. If we want to build a more entrepreneurial and equitable society, we have to offer benefits to the people doing the incredible work.
At We Are Rosie, we’ve built our entire company on our “see a problem, solve a problem” philosophy. As the access point between marketing talent and brands, we simply couldn’t standby and ignore the problematic lack of access to healthcare for our peers. We knew we had to once again create the change we wanted to see in the way marketing and advertising work gets done by redefining how the talent doing the work is treated and cared for.
We are Rosie is proud to announce that for every eligible* Rosie put to work, we will offer Medical, Dental, and Vision coverage. We are also proud to set our Rosies up with a weekly payment schedule to avoid the unpredictable payment delays that flexible workers have considered normal. This is a small start. There are over 1,800 state and federal laws pertaining to independent workers. And while those laws have been focusing on gig-style staff (e.g., ride-sharing, delivery-workers), we think there can be a new way to protect independent contractors who act as their own entrepreneurs.
The future of work has undeniably arrived. Modern professionals want flexibility and stability. They want and deserve not to worry about getting sick, having a toothache, or waiting for payments. As we continue to grow our people-first company, we are proud to be champions of treating talent with the dignity and respect they deserve.
*We have to say eligible, because of the unique nature of every project. Trust us, we have plans to roll this out to everyone who works through us. Until then, consider this is our Phase 1.
