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Topic: Freelance Job Category: Too Broad
| Author | Message |
| susanspeer | Posted – 12/3/2007 3:17:48 PM | show profile Sorry, don't mean to rant, but it drives me nuts to have to read through so many postings that are categorized as "freelance," only to find out that they're really looking for an on-site contractor/temp, or worse, they're posting for FT jobs in the freelance category. Perhaps it's the definition of "freelance" that's at issue here. I define "freelance" as work performed independently, at a location of my choosing. (Legally, companies engaging freelancers/independents cannot define where the work is performed.) "Freelance" may be too broad. Is there a way to set up form fields to force a more specific description/category? A field that forces them to specify on/off-site up top, and not just their physical location would help. Maybe on the seeker's end, being able to narrow the search on similar terms would help. Ideas? Comments? Suggestions? Again, sorry for the rant. Thanks for reading this far! Cheers, Susan |
| dribbledrive1 | Posted – 12/3/2007 3:39:50 PM | show profile This is a good point. Full-time, onsite work isn't freelance to me -- it's simply a full-time job without benefits. |
| writesonwater | Posted – 12/5/2007 2:22:19 AM | show profile I agree. I think employers looking for 9-to-5 on-site benefit-free workers should be made to advertise in an on-site contract work section or something, at least. To me, true freelance means I pick where I work/I get paid more to compensate for the fact that I have to purchase my own benefits etc. |
| notimetolose | Posted – 12/19/2007 10:22:32 AM | show profile There are plenty of in-house freelance opportunities, but not quite so many off-site jobs. I've done both, and now only work from my home office. It would be so useful if the freelance category included a checkbox for employers that indicates if the job is on-site or off-site. Many are so ambiguous that I hesitate to waste my time contacting them. Also, giving employers category option might make them think maybe they could have the job done off-site. It's so much cheaper for them, after all. When I compare how much I bill a client when I work from home with how much they pay me to sit around their office waiting for pages to come through (I'm a copyeditor), I wonder why more employers aren't devising an off-site strategy. |
| Metro Writer | Posted – 1/8/2008 9:24:02 PM | show profile Susan and Water, you're correct. If necessary, bring that up in negotiations. All free-lancers and contract workers need to stand their ground about this. Sadly, Americans have been brainwashed into thinking that unions are never going to make a comeback and that people just have to accept fewer benefits. Look at Europe. The French get the benefits they demand or they strike. Ditto for the Italians. And they don't live worse than Americans do. Actually, they live quite well. They travel. They dine out. They have all the conveniences and modern electronics. Somehow they can even afford to pay the equivalent of $5.00 for gasoline. They even have socialized medicine (GASP!) and live longer, so how bad can all that be? |
