InstaWork App Connects Workers to Jobs Immediately

Instawork, an app that links skilled workers with businesses in need of labor, announced on Wednesday that it had surpassed its goal of adding 100,000 new hourly Professionals (Pros) before 2022.

The company issued a call for more Pros on September 16, 2021, and quickly met its goal in six weeks, significantly faster than the three-month deadline they had set for themselves. 1.5 million Americans are currently registered with the app.

Instawork has boomed in popularity since the onset of the pandemic, especially in 2021. The app has experienced a 50% increase in new workers since August. The company says that this surge is due to a 37% increase in new businesses across the country, spanning hospitality, retail, restaurant, and warehouse industries. Instawork helps a wide variety of businesses make sure they are suitably staffed for the holiday season rush. Instawork is experiencing significant demand in major markets:

• Chicago – 59% increase in new Pros downloading the app
• Los Angeles – 44% increase in new Pros downloading the app
• Atlanta – 47% increase in new Pros downloading the app
• Las Vegas – 41% increase in new Pros downloading the app

“Hourly workers have been on the frontlines of this pandemic and want their voices heard,” said Sumir Meghani, InstaWork’s CEO. “We are listening. Through Instawork, Pros can not only find the flexibility to set their own schedules, but they have access to shifts that pay higher wages, reflective of their unique skills and experience. For the future of work to be successful for working-class professionals, it must continue to address critical growth and work-life balance needs like opportunities for training and development – resources we aim to provide in 2022.”

The majority of InstaWork Pros earn twice the amount of their state’s hourly minimum wage each shift. They also have benefits like hassle-free onboarding, same-day payment for their shift, and an in-app network to help with job selection, support, and feedback.

InstaWork earns $60M investment

InstaWork was first launched in 2016 with the goal of linking thousands of businesses with over a million skilled workers in the US. The company’s late 2021 success was predated by a $60 million investment from Craft Ventures this past June.

Craft Ventures led the round, with participation from Greylock, Corner Ventures, Four River Group, WndrCo and Tilman Fertitta, owner of Landry’s and the Houston Rockets; existing investors Benchmark, Spark Capital, GV, Burst Capital and SV Angel also participated.

Craft General Partner Jeff Fluhr, who joined Instawork’s board of directors as a result of the investment, praised the app’s innovation in the labor market:

“Every day we hear more news about businesses that can’t hire workers to meet the sharp rise in demand,” Fluhr said. “Instawork has cracked the code for hiring flexible hourly workers: its seamless marketplace solves the problem that hospitality businesses, restaurants, warehouses, sports stadiums, and retail outlets have all been experiencing.”