Culture

Looking for a part-time job? Here are 9 part-time positions available for Filipinos

posted 607 days ago

Having a steady, decent-paying job is definitely something to be thankful for. Not everyone is always in a position to maintain a full-time job, however. Since 2008, the number of Filipinos holding part-time jobs has steadily risen. As a share of total employment, 33.9 percent of the 40.8 million people in the labor force in 2012 were employed part-time.

There are several factors that might spur people onto looking for part-time employment: school, family, supplemental income. One of the sad realities, however, is that there are simply not enough quality, full-time positions in the country.

An International Labor Organization (ILO) report released in 2013 noted the increasing share of youth working part-time.

“Bihira ‘yung full-time, sustainable jobs… and reports like this affirm that… it affirms claims of labor groups that contractualization is on the high,” said labor expert Rene Ofreneo in remarks about the ILO report to GMA News.

Whatever the case is for finding additional work, landing a part-time job that fits your skills and your schedule takes time and effort. To better understand which side gigs are available for you, we made a list of jobs that interested part-timers can try out.

Online content writing

Online content writing does pay, but certainly not $500 an hour, and not even $5 an hour, contrary to what online ads like to show. Still, the lure of a flexible, work-from-home schedule appeals to many. What’s the real story behind online content writing? One of our contributors, Darius Nease, wrote of his experience in the online freelance writing world. It’s an incredibly interesting look into the ins and outs of that industry, and we highly recommend you read his entire piece. But for those who don’t have time, here is a quick summary of his story:

“The vast majority of writing work on sites like Craigslist, oDesk and Elance do not require expertise in a field other than English. Some of the most popular positions are writing articles for search engine optimization (SEO) and writing in the Romance and Erotica genres.

“First, the word count is misleading, to put it kindly. 90 percent of the gigs I took on involved writing one original 500-word article, and then writing another 500-word article on the same subject, with the same keywords. It is essentially saying the same thing as the first article but writing it in such a way that the second article cannot be considered a plagiarized copy of the first.

“Typical payment for a 500 word article is US$2.00 and turnaround time is 3 hours. oDesk automatically takes 10 percent of your payment as their service fee and between online payment service and Philippine bank fees, about another 7 percent is taken from your funds. Doing some quick math at the current exchange rate and assuming you put in a typical eight hour work day, you would net just shy of PHP 201.00 daily.”

Fast food service crew / Barista

Being a full-time student is demanding work. Projects and deadlines take a toll, and so for those looking for extra income, a front-line job working as a barista or fast-food service crew member can be a welcome break from tedious academic work.

Mark Nolledo, who used to work as a crew member for a fast food chain, wrote of his experience in the industry.

“Schedules rotate faster than a moving wheel, and you have no choice but to keep up with it or risk being reprimanded by irritated managers,” said Nolledo.

“Work isn’t limited to physical stuff, too. We are regularly tested for company standards.”

Salary ranges for part-time work start at PHP 30-50 per hour for fast food service crew members, and at PHP 50-60 per hour for baristas. Part-timers at fast food chains are expected to work 20 to 30 hours each week, but this can depend on the specific store manager. For a barista we spoke to from one coffee chain, it was 5 hours a day, 5 days per week. Perks usually include free meals for fast food service crews, and free coffee and desserts for baristas, although this varies depending on the chain, too.

Joy, who was a part-time barista and a full-time student, talked about managing work and school at the same time:

“It wasn’t too hard, sometimes I did 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. school, and then 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. work, and I’d do my schoolwork after that. But I mostly made up my hours during the weekend. I would do 10 hours during the weekend.”

Freelance work in fashion, photography and events

There is no shortage of success stories by individuals who have managed to make a name for themselves while working as freelancers in the real world. From fashion, to photography and events, these individuals prove that you can indeed make it big if you try hard enough. How hard is it to get started though? And what do you need to make it big?

One common trend is they had to start out working for free, slowly built a loyal base of clients, and expanded their network.

Anj Dargani, a freelance makeup artist, shared how she got started and how long it took for her to turn it into a career:

“I tried my best to get connected to different photographers, stars, models, and beauty queens,” said Dargani.

“I didn’t earn right away. It took me two years or so to start earning. I kept investing on good quality makeup, as well as taking courses and workshops. I offered my services for free to my family and friends for a month and a half. Then in December 2011, I started Magic by Anj Dargani and began offering my professional services. I am also a guest makeup artist at MAC-Rockwell.”

Weddings and events host Nadine Madarang shared about her early days:

“I started out hosting the events of my friends. Sometimes, their guests would approach me and ask me to host their future events. Never underestimate the power of word of mouth. That, to me, is still the best marketing tool.”

Modeling

Modeling work definitely has its appeals. Who wouldn’t want to get paid to look beautiful in front of a camera?

The realities of modeling as part-time work aren’t that easy though. First off, there are different types of modeling. As Ralph Mendoza detailed in a story for the Philippine Star, one student’s gig earned her up to Php 2,000 a day, but also led to indecent proposals.

Competition is incredibly stiff, the industry can be intimidating to newbies, and for commercials, brands often prefer to cast fair-skinned, mixed-heritage individuals. But there are also commercials that seek models to represent people from all walks of life: from a young college student to a friendly-looking grandfather. For those that have the looks, personality, and talent, modeling can be a lucrative part-time job.

How to get started? Look to sign up with a modeling/talent agency. The agencies will point you to casting calls, and will take a small percentage of the pay if you are chosen.

Earn money from playing “Dota 2″

Video game addicts dream of getting paid to play games all day. But it isn’t all play and no work. Gaming is serious business and it’s a surprisingly lucrative field: The popular videogame “Dota 2” has spawned several millionaire gamers. How do you break into the gaming industry? Obviously, you have to learn how to play the games AND be good at them. If you’re looking to earn money from “Dota 2” as a side gig, you can buy and sell items, submit item designs, bet on games (but that’s gambling), or join tournaments.

BPO or call center agent

Many students and young professionals opt to work for the rapidly growing BPO industry. Despite being known for its high turnover rate, call center jobs appeal to those who want to earn a little extra. The starting salary of a call center agent is PHP 12,000—not bad for someone looking for part-time work.

But if you’re a student who wants to a job at a call center, you need to have mad time management skills. Juggling classes and working the night shift is hard to pull off, but, as student-slash-call-center-agent Guen Gemoto said, “With the right motivation, working students can take it.”

Apply for the government’s employment program

The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) offers part-time employment opportunities for students and out-of-school youth with their Special Program for the Employment of Students (SPES) program. Applicants must come from families with an annual net income of not more than PHP 143,000. This is a great opportunity for “poor but deserving students,” as per RA 7323, who want to hone their leadership skills. Full-time students may work during their Christmas and summer breaks, while those taking vocational programs may apply for a job any time of the year. You can find the complete requirements here.

Teaching English

There’s a reason the BBC called the Philippines “the world’s budget English teacher.” With the language integrated into almost all aspects of daily life, it’s hard to find someone in the country who can’t speak or understand even just a little English.

And the Philippines has gained such a reputation from our English skills that people from all over the world flock to our shores in order to learn the language. Apart teaching English in-person to foreigners who are visiting, technology and the internet has made it possible to teach English online.

51Talk and Rarejobs are just a few of the options. To do this, you’ll need to have a good command of the language (you take a test), and a decent internet connection.

We reached out to a Rarejobs teacher about his experience. Mark, 22, taught English online when he was a university student.

“I made around Php 120 per hour, and it’s not a very demanding job. It’s extra income. I usually spent two hours a day, but it really depended on when I want to do it. You can book students based on your schedule, and you can call them via Skype. There are modules too that help the students learn, and this serves as a guide,” said Mark.

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