We recently reported on how the internet has opened up a variety of new avenues for those seeking employment, particularly those looking to take their working lives into their own hands and go freelance. You can check out the full article here. In this post, we will look at new figures which prove that the fairer sex is taking to freelance work above permanent positions, and why this choice could prove incredibly beneficial to women within the world of work.
What Are The Statistics?
PCG, the association for independent professionals, conducted research which showed a noticeable rise in female freelancers, with a 24% rise in mothers entering into this type of work. The number of women choosing self-employment over traditional working roles and hours has risen five times as fast as those taking on permanent roles, eclipsing the number of males by almost fourteen times in the last quarter.
Flexibility and Freedom
The main selling point for freelancing is flexibility. Over the years, working mothers have been marred by a stigma within the world of recruitment; often they are penalised by their employers for trying to ‘have it all’, i.e., juggling busy work schedules and deadlines with the pressures of motherhood and family life. It has often been suggested that discrimination against mothers in full-time work is rife in many companies. Freelancing is a great way of changing the traditional working week to suit the needs of families, with many women able to set their own hours and deadlines and choosing when or when not to work, depending on the requirements of their personal life.
Choosing Your Path
The other main reason women are choosing freelancing over regularly set work patterns is the idea of ‘being your own boss’. The sometimes mundane office atmosphere is replaced with working from home or even the local coffee house, allowing workers the freedom of choice over not just how long they work for, but also where. Moreover, being able to change your career path steadily over certain projects allows for the learning of new skills and the bonus of making connections with people in many different industries.
Traditional office roles are being revamped thanks to the technological advancements we have encountered over the past few years, and with that so are the traditional roles of females. Whereas previously women have perhaps been held back from achieving work-related goals due to the rapid changes expected when starting a family, it is now possible to achieve success both as a mother and an employee. Freelance sites specifically aimed at working parents have cropped up all over the internet in recent years, meaning that any women who are looking to make the transition from worker into working mother can find support and information at the click of a button.
Jamie Mistlin find me on Google+.
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