2008.6.23 New York Times
Labor Needs to Improve Conditions for Nonunion Workers, Official Warns by Steven Greenhouse
" Ed Ott, the executive director of the New York City Central Labor Council . . . sees two working classes in New York: a unionized one that is doing well and a nonunion one that is struggling to get by. . . . The labor council is also trying to make common cause with the Freelancers Union, a Brooklyn-based group that is seeking to provide affordable health and disability benefits to tens of thousands of freelancers and independent contractors."

2008.6.22 New York Times Magazine
Idea Lab: Network Nation by Dalton Conley
"There is lots of talk in progressive policy circles that we need a “New New Deal” or some other sort of postindustrial revision to the social contract. . . . The Freelancers Union allows self-employed individuals to purchase health insurance at less expensive group rates."

2008.6.16 Crain's
New York turns more to taxpayers by Carolyn Colwell
"A number of nonprofit organizations are springing up to replicate the group-purchasing power of employers. One of the most prominent, Freelancers Union, offers health insurance programs that cover about 17,000 people statewide, plus another 800 who work in New York but live in New Jersey or Connecticut. Most of them would not have been able to afford individual insurance."

2008.6.14 Crain's
Curing young of invincibility complex by Carolyn Colwell
"Of New York City’s 1.2 million uninsured in 2005-06, 27% were young adults 19 to 34, the United Hospital Fund reports. Health care experts call this age group the “young invincibles,” because of their proclivity to count on strong bodies and quick reflexes instead of insurance."

2008 New York Review of Magazines
Independent Writers of the World, Unite! by Lauren R. Harrison
"[Freelancers Union] does what politicians this election year only offer as puffy rhetoric; it provides health insurance that everyone can afford. . . . it exists not only to procure a lower rate of insurance for independent workers--including freelance writers, temporary workers, consultants, independent contractors and the self-employed--but to promote relevant policy changes."

2008.4.19 The Street
My Company Doesn't Provide Health Insurance (Gulp!) by Farnoosh Torabi
"So how to independently buy insurance and avoid paying a fortune? . . . Join the Freelancers Union. Or some other nearby association, like the local chamber of commerce, that may offer a group health plan, again, with the discounted premiums."

2008.3.27 New York Times
Finding Health Insurance if You Are Self-Employed by Marci Alboher
"Many readers shared recommendations based on where they buy their insurance. . . . Another possibility for consultants and independent workers is the Freelancers Union, which won consistently good reviews in the reader comments."

2008.3.11 New York Observer
This Gun for Higher: Brooklyn Freelance Frenzy by Tom Acitelli
"From 2002 through 2005, the number of self-employed creative freelancers in Brooklyn increased 33.2 percent, according to the Brooklyn Economic Development Corporation. And 28 percent of the city's creative freelancers lived in Brooklyn in 2005, more than any other borough except Manhattan, which has 32 percent. . . . 'They are the je ne sais quoi workers,' Ms. Horowitz said of freelancers. 'They're the people who make New York special. This not a sad-sack sort of workforce--they know how to get stuff done.' "

2008.3.6 Metro New York
Freelancers Push for Own Zone by Amy Zimmer
"Brooklyn's 'creative self-employed' workers — its architects, designers, writers, jewelry makers — are growing. But what's to stop this population from fleeing the region? Perhaps special zoning to help them find affordable rents is one answer, according to Freelancers Union founder Sara Horowitz."

2008.3.6 Morning Edition on WNYC
Creative Brooklynites Gather at Forum by Matthew Sherman
Listen online: Coverage of a panel discussion sponsored by the Center for an Urban Future, where Sara Horowitz spoke about the importance of independent workers to Brooklyn's character and economy.

2008.3 Good Magazine
Union Maid by Daniel Brook
"For the one-third of the American workforce that freelances in some form, the traditional union model was no longer applicable. But without some sort of collective voice, freelancers were being over-looked by the government. . . . The union is now embarking on expanding both the benefits it offers and where it offers them. It is working on a system of unemployment insurance for freelancers and will soon offer retirement accounts that give independent workers the benefits of being part of a larger group rather than being a piddling lone IRA account at a big brokerage house."

2008.2.15 NOW on PBS
Benefits Denied Hosted by David Brancaccio, Produced by Jennie Amias
Watch online: Part of NOW's "Enterprising Ideas" series, this episode focuses on Freelancers Union's efforts to update the social safety net, and on the issues facing independent workers.

2008.1.23 Marketplace
All the work, none of the benefits by Lisa Napoli
Listen online: Many companies are now hiring freelance workers to toil indefinitely with no promise of future benefits or salaries. Lisa Napoli has the story on what is becoming known as "permalancing." Freelancers Union Executive Director Sara Horowitz is quoted.

2008.1.7 New York Post
Battle Lines by Chris Erikson
"Where's the safety net for people working outside the corporate umbrella? Nobody spends more time pondering such questions than Sara Horowitz, the president of the six-year-old Freelancers Union. . . . [She] sat down with @work recently to talk about what the Viacom strike means, how times are changing and why workers should no longer expect employers to take care of them."

2008.1.3 New York Times
Home-Office Life and Its Discontents by Ralph Gardner Jr.
"[Renting] space in a communal office [is] an increasingly popular option for those who can afford it. According to Sara Horowitz, the executive director of the Freelancers Union, a nonprofit organization that advocates for the self-employed, the use of communal work spaces has been on the rise among members for about three years, 'and in the last year it’s started accelerating.'"

2007.12.14 Marketplace
Temps with Benefits by Ashley Milne-Tyte
Listen online: With freelancing and consulting on the rise, Marketplace's Ashley Milne-Tyte learns about the growing movement among the self-employed to get more than just a paycheck. Freelancers Union Executive Director Sara Horowitz is quoted.

2007.12.14 Clarion Ledger
At Work: Organization helps independent workers find insurance, tax info
by Andrea Kay
"As a mobile worker - also known as a contingent or independent worker - issues include finding your own health-care, dental, disability and life insurance at rates you can afford, figuring out your taxes and establishing your own retirement plan. Sara Horowitz might be able to help. She is a social entrepreneur who understands your issues and is determined to offer a solution. She started a union that supports people like you - whether you're freelance, temporary, part time, self-employed or a consultant. But don't let the word 'union' throw you . . ."

2007.12.13 Financial Times
Workers of the New World, unite! by John Gapper
"Logically, there ought to be a place for unions or mutual organisations to establish health insurance and pensions for freelancers. Indeed, the Freelancers Union, a New York-based mutual group, is already doing so. The idea that workers should band together outside the workplace is old: the co-operative movement has a long history in both the UK and US. But its insurance-based health system and defined-contribution pension schemes make the US fertile territory for the workers of the new world to unite."

2007.12.13 The Nation Online
Permalancers, Unite! by Anya Kamenetz
"'I've never seen people in this part of the workforce walk off their jobs like this,' [Sara Horowitz] says. 'I think they're ready to start articulating their needs in a real way, and our role is to help provide structure and coherence and infrastructure and ways we can be supportive and go where it goes.' . . . Horowitz sees the need for a much broader response than negotiation with one company to fight misclassification while preserving true flexibility by providing all workers with portable benefits. "This is the beginning of a social movement," she says, "and it's not always going to be linear and coherent." "

2007.12.11 New York Times
Freelancers Walk Out at MTV Networks by Brian Stelter
"The walkout highlighted the concerns of a category of workers who are sometimes called permalancers: permanent freelancers who work like full-time employees but do not receive the same benefits. Sara Horowitz, the founder of the Freelancers Union, an organization of 40,000 New York area freelancers, said permalancing was widespread, particularly in the media industry. Protests, however, are not. 'I really think it’s getting to a point where people are not willing to take it anymore,' she said."

2007.11.13 USA Today
Employer-provided insurance continues to decline by Julie Appleby
"Sara Horowitz, founder and director of the Freelancers Union . . . says something needs to change, because the working world has. 'The nature of work is changing: Jobs are much more short-term and flexible,' Horowitz says. 'That's why we need to think about new kinds of models … and start building a portable benefits network.'"

2007.11.13 Talk of the Nation
More Americans Choosing to Work from Home
Freelancers Union Executive Director Sara Horowitz appears as a guest on the NPR talk show.

2007.11.04 New York Times
Home-Office Politics by Matt Bai
"If workers’ benefits weren’t tied to employers, then they could transition into independent status without fear of losing their health care or pensions, and more employers would gladly oblige, since they could move costly benefits packages off their books. . . . There are some significant agents for change; the New York Freelancers Union (now the fourth-largest in the state) offers benefits in some states and lobbies for independent workers."

2007.10.17 The Washington Times
Independent workers in '08 by John M. Bridgeland and Gary Andres
"As presidential candidates roll out new health-care plans that rely on employers and government, they might turn their attention to this fact: Independent workers - which include part-time workers, the self-employed, contractors, temporary workers, leased workers and on-call employees - have emerged as a powerful force in America."

2007.10.03 The Cleveland Plain Dealer
Business Diary
"Independent workers in Ohio now have access to affordable and comprehensive dental care traditionally available only through employer-sponsored plans, the New York-based Freelancers Union said."

2007.9.04 Gotham Gazette
A Fair Deal for the New Workforce by Sara Horowitz
"Policymakers and government officials can no longer afford to overlook the challenges faced by New Yorkers who do not work for a 'traditional' employer. It is time that we develop ways to provide these productive, income-generating taxpayers with access to the things other workers take for granted: health insurance, retirement accounts, equitable taxation and workplace protections."

2007.08.31 CNNMoney.com
Teetering on the Edge of Insurance by Carolyn Bigda
"Already missed the 63-day window to getting an individual policy without exclusions? Start by checking to see if an industry group or a professional organization in your field has negotiated a plan with guaranteed coverage. The Freelancers Union, for example, offers policies to members in New York regardless of health, and at a 40 percent discount to typical premiums in the individual market, according to the organization's executive director. "

2007.08.07 Wall Street Journal
Uninsured Grads Risk Finances, Future Coverage by Cheryl Soltis
"In June, the Freelancers Union, a national nonprofit that represents consultants, independent contractors, part-timers, temps and the self-employed, formed a partnership with Golden Rule to reach out to more uninsured workers. There is no fee to join the Freelancers Union, which offers a range of health and other insurance in addition to Golden Rule's long- and short-term health plans."

2007.06.21 Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Freelancers turn to unions for help on health insurance by Tammy Joyner
"While lawmakers play political football with the nation's health insurance dilemma, some unusual alliances have been formed to run interference for a growing but largely overlooked group: freelancers like Giarratano. Freelance, self-employed, consultant, temp and other independent workers account for about a third of the U.S. work force. . . . 'People should be able to do the kind of work they want to do. They shouldn't be making that decision based on getting health insurance,' said Sara Horowitz, a New York labor attorney and third-generation union organizer who founded the freelancers' group.' "

2007.06.20 Crain's Insider
Freelancer Tax Cut
"The new city budget lowers taxes on freelancers and other independent workers who pay the unincorporated business tax by allowing more of their UBT payments to be deducted from city income tax. Freelancers making $75,000 will see their UBT reduced by 66%, about $500. The Freelancers Union lobbied for the change, with help from the Partnership for New York City, Councilman David Yassky of Brooklyn and Comptroller Bill Thompson. It will cost the city $28 million next year. Independent workers were not targets of the original UBT but now pay 13.5% of it-$181 million in 2006."

2007.06.11 Crain's
NY economy booms, defying U.S. trend by Tom Fredrickson
"The addition in recent years of hundreds of thousands of self-employed workers has lifted the economy above where it was in 2000 . . . Self-employed people are 'driving the city's economic growth,' says Sara Horowitz, executive director of the Freelancers Union. 'All of the city's key industries rely on them.' "

2007.06.07 U.S. News & World Report
A New Option for Uninsured Self-Employed Workers by Michelle Andrews
"If you're one of the growing number of people who work for yourself or can't get health insurance through your job, now you've got another option. The Freelancers Union, a New York-based organization for self-employed workers, contractors, part-timers, and others who don't have an employer providing them with benefits, rolled out health insurance policies in 30 states this week."

2007.05.24 New York Sun
A Tax that Tests Mayors by Scott Moody
"The UBT steals productive time and money from small businesses - the lifeblood of New York City's economy. Small businesses that pay less than $10,000 in UBT account for only 8.6% of revenue yet account for 71.4% of all returns. . . . The flaws of the UBT are so well-known, that an exasperated Freelancers Union has repeatedly stated that "Independent workers should not have to pay more taxes than traditional workers because of an arbitrary distinction between traditional and alternative work arrangements. The independent workforce deserves more equitable tax treatment and a streamlined tax code." Let Mayor Bloomberg prove his good will by fighting harder against this tax."

2007.05.14 New York Daily News
Health care help for freelancers by Elizabeth Lazarowitz
"Soaring health care costs can put you in a dangerous position financially, as well as physically. Getting into a group plan through a professional organization is sometimes a cheaper alternative. The Freelancers Union (freelancersunion.org), for example, offers plans that cost $324 a month for one person."

2007.04.29 Wall Street Journal
Free-Lancing's Office Side by Diana Ransom
"One option is coverage through reputable trade associations and other groups. According to Sara Horowitz, founder of the Freelancers Union, a national nonprofit organization for independent workers, its 50,000 members can expect to pay between $125 and $360 a month in health-insurance premiums."

2007.04.16 New York Sun
Freelancers Target a Tax for Removal by Grace Rauh
"The founder and executive director of the Freelancers Union, which represents 50,000 independent workers in the city, Sara Horowitz, said freelancers are like "dolphins in the tuna net," stuck paying a tax not designed for them. . . . The tax in question, known as the unincorporated business tax, is a 4% income tax on people operating unincorporated businesses in the city."

2007.04.03 Metro New York
The State of the Middle Class by Amy Zimmer
"Sara Horowitz, founder of the Freelancers Union, said independent workers such as graphic designers and dancers are as middle-class as cops and teachers, but without the job protections."

2007.03.26 New York Magazine
The Young Invincibles by David Amsden
"There was a time when a health plan symbolized something-you were making it-but now benefits are scarce at many levels. . . . No insurance? Here's where to go when you decide you need insurance: If you freelance twenty hours a week, call the Freelancers Union."

2007.03.23 Associated Press
Unions Target New Groups of Workers by John Seewer
"There are unions now that don't fit the traditional mold. The Freelancers Union, based in Brooklyn, N.Y., doesn't bargain wages or benefits with employers. Instead, it offers low cost health care, life insurance and networking for its 45,000 members who are writers, artists and Web site designers."

2007.03.13 NY1
Freelancers Union Helps Independent Workers Navigate Finance by Shazia Khan
Watch the segment online.

2007.02.07 The Brian Lehrer Show, WNYC
The New "U"
Listen online to an interview with Freelancers Union founder Sara Horowitz.

2007.01.27 New York Times
Labor Union, Redefined, for Freelance Workers by Steven Greenhouse
"A former labor lawyer, Ms. Horowitz intends to form a forceful advocacy group for freelancers and independent contractors, the most mobile members of an increasingly mobile work force. In addition, she is trying to adapt unions to a world far different from yesteryear, when workers often remained with one employer for two or three decades. 'This really is about a new unionism,' she said, 'and what it means is to bring people together to solve their problems.'"

2007.01.23 Associated Press
Individual Health Insurance by Vinnee Tong
"One New York-based nonprofit, the Freelancers Union, addresses a growing need for plans not sponsored by a company and has plans to expand its services to members outside New York. Members around the country can buy disability and life insurance, but only those in New York can buy health insurance. In the coming months, Freelancers Union plans to begin offering options to buy health insurance in the states with the greatest demand."

2007.01.21 New York Post
They Make It Work: Spike in Self-Employment Brings Perks by David K. Li
"One of the biggest challenges for the self-employed is health insurance. Almost 60 percent of New York's self-employed live with another wage earner, and thus another possible source for health insurance, Thompson's report said. Holford and Sayres said they're grateful just for the chance to shell out more than $300 a month for coverage through the Freelancers Union."

2007.01.03 TalentZoo.com
The Hot Mic #8 - Freelancers Union
An audio interview with Freelancers Union founder Sara Horowitz.

2007.01.01 Crain's
Independent workers come of age by Judith Messina
"New York City has one of the largest--if not the largest--freelance workforces in the nation . . . Lately, they have also been getting support from professional associations and other groups, like the Freelancers Union, that fill the need for education, networking opportunities and other services."

2006.12 - 2007.01 Fast Company
Class of '07: The Fast Company/Monitor Group Social Capitalist Award Winners by Tonya Garcia, Polya Lesova, Josie Swindler, and Kathryn Tuggle
"A sort of union for independent workers. At its Web site, people can post profiles, network, and browse targeted ads. It offers members low-cost health, life, and disability insurance--and, soon, retirement plans and tax and financial services--and fights for changes in unemployment and tax laws." Grade: A.

2006.12 - 2007.01 Working Mother
Moms Who Save the World by Caroline Howard
"Sara's mission is to protect the interests of the newest member of the labor family: independent workers, who make up about 30 percent of the workforce."

2006.11.11 The Economist
Freelancers of the world, unite!
"Not for nothing has Ms Horowitz been described as the 'quintessential example' of a social entrepreneur--someone who applies the innovative spirit and discipline of a Silicon Valley start-up to try to solve society's thorniest problems . . ."

2006.11.07 Brooklyn Daily Eagle
Brooklyn-Based Freelancers Union Publishes Survey of NYC Freelancers
"As employers continue to cut benefits like health insurance and pensions, traditional full-time workers might soon find themselves in need of a new system as well."

2006.11.06 The Nation
Downsized but not out by Barbara Ehrenreich
"We are working with other groups, such as the National Employment Lawyers Association (nela.org) and the Freelancers' Union (freelancersunion.org), to be able to offer free legal advice and, eventually, affordable health insurance to our members . . ."

2006.10.19 The Cleveland Plain Dealer
Going solo without worry of healthcare by Alison Grant
"Along with the edgy assignments and the flexibility of independent work come the perils of life as a free-lancer: An inconsistent paycheck. No pension. The isolation of a solo operator. And, especially, scary health insurance costs. Sara Horowitz, a labor attorney in Brooklyn, N.Y., has answers for entrepreneurs . . ."

2006.09.25 Metro New York, Metro Philadelphia
Free range by Daniel Holloway
"Anyone who's been a freelancer, temp or contractor knows the frustration of working without the security full-time employees enjoy. Sara Horowitz wants to take the edge off that. . . . Horowitz [is] at the forefront of what she calls 'the third form of unionism.'"

2006.09.20 Associated Press
Freelancer Benefits by J.W. Elphinstone
"So you've ditched the corporate world for autonomy and a home office. But to make it as your own boss, you must compensate for the company benefits you left behind. The Freelancers Union offers several tips for those seeking independent professional lives . . ."

2006.09.18 Crain's
Gotham Gigs: Union Loyalist by Miriam Kreinin Souccar
"This is like the women's movement or the gay rights movement--it's going to be the next movement."

2006.08.24 Gotham Gazette
Fringe Benefits by Jonathan Mandell
"If, for many people, talk of "performing artists" conjures up images of, say, Jodie Foster at the Oscars (or, more locally, Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick at the Tony's), there are of course only a handful of stars. Most artists are "independent workers," according to Sara Horowitz, the executive director of the Freelancers Union..."

2006.08.22 Crain's
Brooklyn Benefits Provider Plans to Go National by Tom Fredrickson
"Freelancers Union, a fast-growing, 10-year-old Brooklyn-based nonprofit that offers benefits to independent workers, is going national."

2006.06.16 New York Daily News
Ax tax that slams indie workers by Sara Horowitz
"Having access to adequate health insurance, pension plans, unemployment coverage and other important job protections is a given for most traditional workers. Yet for thousands of New Yorkers who work for themselves - freelancers, temps, actors, artists and consultants - it is not . . ."

2006.04.29 Wall Street Journal
Get a Life--Somewhere Else by Terry Teachout
"It's no secret . . . that the tax code is especially hard on free-lancers of all kinds. . . . So why stay? . . . For the ambitious young artist, that question used to answer itself--but the answer is changing. While New York is a great city and doubtless always will be, there is nothing necessary, much less inevitable, about its place at the top of the artistic food chain."

2003.06.03 Wall Street Journal
Free-lancers of the World 'Unite' for Work and Benefits by Kemba J. Dunham
"Free-lancer workers, a scattered but growing portion of the labor force, now have a labor advocate that wants to address their problems. . . . Although free-lancers can't officially "unionize," the organization has adopted this terminology because it plans to act on behalf of a collective group that often feels isolated."

2002.12 Esquire
The Big Idea: Insurance for Everyone by Bryan Mealer
"The first thing you need to know about Sara Horowitz is that she loves insurance. She loves the philosophy of it: Life is constant risk; distribute that risk so that no one will ever be too exposed. . . . [Freelancers Union] for the first time on a large scale takes the place of a corporate benefits manager, allowing workers to obtain health care through reliable associations."

2002.10.02 New York Times
Health Insurance for Freelancers by Stephanie Strom
"Working Today looks poised to be a model for delivering health insurance and other benefits in a new way, one better suited to today's mobile, more fluid work force, which is exactly what Ms. Horowitz, winner of a MacArthur "genius" award in 1999, had hoped when she cooked it up . . ."

1999.09.01 USA Today
Past can teach how to cope with new jobs' uncertainties by Sara Horowitz and Peter DeChiara
"For many of today's independent workers, the answer must come through worker associations--as the craftsmen learned years ago. Today's free agents need to band together to push for legal protections and tax relief."