Aug 09
29
Freelance jobs have come to the front as a result of the current economic climate. The number of people who are employed has seen a huge fall in most countries and this has led to a growth in the size of the labor black market and in the freelance market. The labor black market will always be with us. Most of us know at least one person who ‘moon-lights’, having two jobs. One job will be his declared and taxable, the other will be the one that the tax man does not know about and which pays him cash in hand with no questions asked.
So, what are freelance jobs?
When a company needs work done but doesn’t want to rely on full time employees, they often hire a freelancer who they can either train or who already has some skills and knowledge about the type of work that needs done. When working as a freelancer many people also refer to this as being self employed. While the title self employed doesn’t sound as glorious as freelancer they mean basically the same thing.
Many people would have never considered a freelance job (self employed) viable because many people figured this type of work wouldn’t provide stable and steady job security. However, within the past year stable and steady job security is the concept which is no longer considered viable for many people.
Other people never considered doing freelance work because they didn’t believe in themselves enough and they figured there would be too much competition for the type of jobs in which they would be qualified to pursue. Because of the recent growing need for freelance workers the reasoning behind this issue also no longer holds water.
Freelance jobs are easier to come by nowadays as businesses seek to cut costs while defending their ability to trade competitively. For many businesses, the biggest and most effective cost-cutting they can do are in the payroll. Business owners are asking themselves if they really need to employ a full time gardener or any other type of employee who does not make a direct contribution to the amount of profit the business creates for itself.
Outsourcing jobs to countries that provide manpower at a fraction of the native manpower cost has been an established practice within the past few years; a prime example is phone support for customers. There has been a dramatic change and increase in possibilities for freelance work. Companies still need manpower to take care of the day to day operations of the company. They still require the services of people to do their gardening, to handle order fulfillment, provide customer service support, etc…These companies are realizing it makes more economical sense if they can use freelancers on an “as needed basis” instead of full time employees.
Just because the economy takes a downturn doesn’t mean the world stands still; companies are still in need of janitors, gardeners, loss prevention personnel, customer service representatives, etc. They don’t want to have full time personnel doing these jobs if they don’t have to. These companies when having to tighten their belts economically have leaned they can cut down their expenses by laying off full time employees and hiring people who do the necessary tasks on an “as needed” basis.
Where can you locate freelance jobs?
Going through an agency is the most direct and easiest way for anyone to land a freelance job. After you get some experience by using an agency to get a freelance job, it is most likely you will then be able to understand how to seek out freelance jobs on your own. This will allow you to cut out the agency as a middleman. Whether you use an agency or find freelance jobs on your own, you will most likely find that it is quite rewarding to work be self employed and work as a freelancer.
