Interest in Work-from-Home Jobs Rise as More Workers Laid Off

Oct. 16, 2008 - PRLog -- Instead of pounding the pavement looking for their next job, many laid-off workers are turning their energies to finding work-from-home opportunities. With rising gas prices, skyrocketing food prices and the overall economic slump, it’s a perfect storm for telecommuting opportunities.

The unemployment rate was at 6.1% in September, causing deep fears of a recession. So far this year, the American economy has lost 750,000 jobs. Worker layoffs have continued throughout the year, and large and small companies alike are affected.

In April, Motorola announced that it planned to cut 2,600 jobs. This month, GM announced plans to lay off almost 700 workers at its truck assembly plant in Pontiac, Michigan. And, contrary to “Joe the Plumber,” who took center stage in the latest presidential debate, most small business owners are contracting, not expanding.

All of this has caused a real fear among many workers, which may account for why many have decided to take matters into their own hands. Many do this by refusing to spend their time looking for another job where they’ll likely face the same end – layoffs. They are looking for viable ways to not only put food on the table, but a manner to segue-way into another career.

Yuwanda Black, publisher of the online freelance writing portal InkwellEditorial.com, cites a recent conversation she had with one of her site’s visitors. She was a new mom who had recently lost her job. She purchased one of the site’s ebooks on how to start a freelance writing career and had her first potential client on tap.

Black states, “Katrina told me that the day before she was to return to work after being on maternity leave, she received a call from her boss telling her she had been downsized. In a web search for work-from-home opportunities, she ran across InkwellEditorial.com. She purchased the ebook on how to become an SEO writer and soon thereafter received interest from a potential client. She said she looked forward to not only forging a new career, but being able to stay home with her child.”

A former staffing agency owner in New York City, Yuwanda went on to state that she only expects this trend to continue. Pressed for details, she says that more and more workers are looking for ways to not only make some immediate money; many want to find careers that won’t put them at risk of being downsized or laid off again.

Freelance writing, she explains, is one niche where work-from-home job possibilities are growing. And, it doesn’t much matter what the economy is doing. In a sluggish economy or a booming one, every day, millions log onto the internet. And, what are they looking for? Information.

Freelance writers do the bulk of it – whether it’s writing reviews for a travel site, a tips brochure for a car site or an informative article for an exercise site.

Freelance writing jobs – particularly online writing jobs – is a growing niche in the telecommuting sector. It is the perfect opportunity for laid-off workers who want to leave the 9-5 world behind once and for all.

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InkwellEditorial.com is the authority site for freelance writing jobs. It features hundreds of pages of information on freelance writing, marketing, success stories and workshops. The online bookstore features ebooks on how to start, grow or maintain a successful freelance writing career.