As the extent of 2020’s pandemic lengthens, with schools and businesses closing their doors across the nation, many employees (and their employers) are discovering how to use technology to do their jobs from home.
This isn’t possible for everyone, of course—if you have been laid off from a service or “hands-on” job in the restaurant, hospitality, manufacturing, or other industries, you may be worrying about how you’ll make ends meet. This holds true especially for people who have school children at home.
While major companies like Amazon, Walmart, and Target are now hiring thousands of new workers and upping pay, people who must care for their kids can’t take advantage of these opportunities.
Important : The good news, though, is that work-from-home jobs now abound—and you probably have the skills to be hired for one.
In fact, a FlexJobs study on remote work reports that “Over the last five years it grew 44% and over the previous 10 years it grew 91%.”
Here’s how to find work-from-home opportunities that will supplement your income as the pandemic plays itself out.
Who’s Hiring?
One of the most exciting trends in recruitment has been that companies across multiple industries have been restructuring their operations to include a remote labor force. This is particularly true in the healthcare, IT, customer service, accounting, sales, and education/training sectors.
As online technologies have become more robust, it’s also now possible for those with strong administrative skills to work from home in these remote computer/administration roles.
There’s truly “something for everyone” in the work-from-home job market. Some of the best jobs to work remotely include call center and computer jobs, data entry, coding, and transcription jobs, customer service jobs, marketing roles, and tutoring/teaching jobs.
Tip : Have a look at these insider tips for finding the best remote jobs and advice on how to find your first work-from-home job to learn more about your work-from-home options.
Get Ready to Job Search
Update your LinkedIn profile and your resume. LinkedIn is a fabulous tool for searching for work-from-home jobs. It also allows you to network widely with employers who specifically seek to hire a virtual workforce. Update your resume there, focusing on tweaking it to mention skills that are highly valued in remote employees.
Note : The most valuable skills sought in candidates for remote work include good keyboarding talents, computer software knowledge, flexibility, and organization. The job ad is your best source for deciding which keyword phrases to use on your resume.
Brush up on your tech skills. The one general requirement for remote workers is that they have a good knowledge of computer skills such as using Microsoft Office, email management, data entry, digital calendar management, video conferencing, and instant messaging.
Free or low-cost online computer classes are offered by providers including LinkedIn Learning, Udemy, and Microsoft 365 Fundamentals.
Search Remote Job Boards
There are online job boards that are focused entirely on listing work-from-home opportunities. Some, like FlexJobs, require a subscription, but others are free to use.
FlexJobs
FlexJobs not only provides carefully curated lists of remote and flexible jobs, but it also offers information about companies that are hiring, skills tests, and other job search resources. (Cost: $14.95/month with occasional 50%-off subscription offers.)
WeWorkRemotely
WeWorkRemotely offers up-to-date listings for work-from-home jobs in fields including Dev. Ops. and Sysadmin, Product and UX Design, Programming, Administration, and Business and Management. (Cost: free.)
Remote
Remote earns its profits by charging employers to list jobs on its site. It offers a straightforward job search engine; simply type in a job title you’re interested in to see what’s out there. (Cost: free.)
Rat Race Rebellion
Rat Race Rebellion offers lists of “home jobs” and “side gigs.” Just click on the job you’re interested in and you’ll be redirected to the hiring company’s online job ad. (Cost: free.)
Upwork
Like Fiverr, Upwork is a popular vehicle for freelancers like writers, photographers, editors, graphic artists, and web designers to find gigs. It also offers work-from-home opportunities for freelancers in Engineering and Architecture, Data Science and Analytics, Legal, Translation, Administrative Support, Customer Service / Technical Support, Sales and Marketing, and Accounting.
Search General Job Boards
Glassdoor has a list of companies that are hiring now for fully remote jobs. Work-from-home jobs are also advertised on top job sites such as Monster, Indeed, and CareerBuilder—search using terms like “remote” and “virtual” to find open positions.
Tip : Indeed has added a search filter so job seekers can easily find roles that have been identified as remote. Click on “Remote” at the top of the search results page to access listings.
Best Search Terms to Use
To see what’s out there, enter keyword phrases such as “work at home,” “work-at-home,” “work from home,” “remote,” “telecommute,” and “online” into the search window. You can narrow your search by also entering the job title you’d be interested in (example: “remote administrative assistant”).
Tip : You may have to work harder when using these sites to ascertain whether an advertised job is in fact a work-from-home role. Read each job description carefully.
Use LinkedIn Jobs
Another wonderful resource is LinkedIn’s free job search engine. Enter your job title in the “Search Jobs” field and the word “Remote” in the “Location” field. Follow the instructions in the job posting to apply easily.
Also, search LinkedIn using the hashtags like #hiring now, #remote, #remotejobs, and #remotework. You can follow the hashtags to review the latest posts.
Visit Company Websites
After learning that having a virtual workforce can save them a lot of money, some companies have implemented active hiring programs for work-at-home jobs. FlexJobs offers a valuable list of the top 100 companies with remote jobs; these include Appen, Lionbridge, VIPKID, Williams-Sonoma, UnitedHealth Group, Aetna, and Amazon. FlexJobs also has a list of 20 fully remote companies that are hiring now.
If there is a company you are particularly interested in working for, such as Amazon, you should also take a look at the “hiring” or “jobs” section on its corporate website.
Experienced Recruiter with a demonstrated history of working in the media production industry. Strong human resources professional with a Bachelor’s degree focused in Psychology from Universitas Kristen Satya Wacana.