S/O plans after baby - part time jobs

Chattsgirl · September 2011

So I am seriously considering working part time after the baby comes. Does anyone here have an "office based" PT Job? I work for a pharma company right now (I price their drugs), but right now Pharma is not doing well at all (no new drugs coming out, no innovation, etc) and so PT jobs are very few and far between (actually I don't even think our company has any PT jobs right now). I have an MBA and would like to put it to use in a part time position, but I am having a hard time finding anything online and even the few recruiters I have talked to said that PT positions are just not very available anymore. Wondering if they are out there. . .

I'm in the northeast (NJ).

n&bcarlson · September 2011

I think the best bet for part time positions in your field is to approach your current employer about shifting your position to part time. That's where I've seen people have the most success, when an employer would rather have an experienced person stay on for 20 hours instead of finding and training someone new. Especially if it means you won't require benefits, and if the industry is slowing down in general. Otherwise, I don't know how easy it is to find new part time jobs. I think a lot of people work part time, but it's because hours have been reduced and they'd rather work full time, not because their company has hired them in at part time.

Jessiree · September 2011

n&bcarlson:
I think the best bet for part time positions in your field is to approach your current employer about shifting your position to part time. That's where I've seen people have the most success, when an employer would rather have an experienced person stay on for 20 hours instead of finding and training someone new. Especially if it means you won't require benefits, and if the industry is slowing down in general. Otherwise, I don't know how easy it is to find new part time jobs. I think a lot of people work part time, but it's because hours have been reduced and they'd rather work full time, not because their company has hired them in at part time.

Exactly this!

Chattsgirl · September 2011

Hi Girls, yes, that is def. an option. I just don't know how keen my dept will be with this. What if I bring it up and and it's not an option? Then they'll know I really don't want to be there full time. . .

Jshort914 · September 2011

Living in NJ and being in pharma (animal health) I would be worried about asking to be PT. There have been so many layoffs in pharma and NJ is a huge pharma area that it would be really easy to find someone willing to do FT work.

However, it might not be that way in your department. I just know marketing/sales is taking a huge hit right now.

Chattsgirl · September 2011

Jshort - I totally agree. And I am not even sure I want to stay in Pharma anymore. . . I will have to really think about this and just look around some more.

sarahemily18 · September 2011

I am going to ask for part time hours, but I doubt they will go for it. I will be trying to find something or just doing small companies' books from home (I am an accountant).

Chattsgirl · September 2011

LibraryChica - more just to stay in the workforce, I know the income is going to be not even close to what I am making now. I went on LinkedIn and joined some groups, they post jobs there too, so I am going to check that out when I am ready (probably in Feb/March or so).

It's a tough decision - I have been working FT for almost 10 years now so it will be a huge change for me (i.e. either not working or working PT). But I really think it is the right path for me; I feel like after having a kid I am much more suited to stay at home and take care of the kids, house, etc.

It's just a matter of if we can afford it, and the answer to that is yes we can, but not the way we are living now. The extraneous spending would need to stop completely, no more eating out, buying things b/c I feel like it, frugal vacations, etc. But in the end, I think it's worth it for my family, so I am going to see what I can do/find.

The other option is part time consulting. . . that might not be as difficult to find. Pharma is hiring more consultants since they are hourly and much less $ than hiring an employee.

summer1117 · September 2011

Maybe instead of part time you could ask for flex time with a few days off a week or 30 hours instead of 40. I am in healthcare administration and am considering asking for this possibly.

Also, I am going to be providing the benefits for my family and I don't think I'd be eligible for health insurance unless I work at least 60% FT which i think is 24 hours a week.

Jshort914 · September 2011

Chattsgirl:

LibraryChica - more just to stay in the workforce, I know the income is going to be not even close to what I am making now. I went on LinkedIn and joined some groups, they post jobs there too, so I am going to check that out when I am ready (probably in Feb/March or so).

It's a tough decision - I have been working FT for almost 10 years now so it will be a huge change for me (i.e. either not working or working PT). But I really think it is the right path for me; I feel like after having a kid I am much more suited to stay at home and take care of the kids, house, etc.

It's just a matter of if we can afford it, and the answer to that is yes we can, but not the way we are living now. The extraneous spending would need to stop completely, no more eating out, buying things b/c I feel like it, frugal vacations, etc. But in the end, I think it's worth it for my family, so I am going to see what I can do/find.

The other option is part time consulting. . . that might not be as difficult to find. Pharma is hiring more consultants since they are hourly and much less $ than hiring an employee.

That might work- you'll get more hourly but work less hours. As long you're on s/o's benefits it could be a good option for you.

LeighAnn922 · September 2011

If you have your MBA, you are eligable to teach UG level courses. Maybe you can look into teaching at a local college or online courses. You can make pretty good money teaching an online course or two, plus its on your time and you can do it from home. I would recommend looking into some online schools like Excelsior College, Empire State Colllege or University of Pheonix. Hope this helps

Huahine · September 2011

I was going to suggest consulting, but LibraryChica beat me to it.

I'm a lawyer. My field (public company deal work) has been a wasteland lately and the part-time jobs just aren't there unless you transition to them from a fulltime gig.

I've been doing part time contract work for the past year. I make more on an hourly basis than if I was in-house, less per hour than if I was still at a firm.

I really like that by contracting I can keep my professional relationships intact and keep developing my network and skill set.

I don't like that sometimes there isn't that much to do, but I think that will be less of an issue once there is a newborn in the house.

You mentioned office based jobs - but there are actually a lot of contract and consulting jobs that aren't office based. You might find that you like working from home with occasional forays into the office.

I'd recommend learning more about some of the giant consulting companies and seeing if there might be some room for you in their health care/pharma group.

Consulting firms seem to be pretty recession proof. It is easier for companies to contract with a consulting company than to hire someone inhouse. So hiring will pick up faster at a consulting company than at a regular company.

You've already done a really smart thing by getting on LinkedIn. Spend the next few months developing your network. When you are ready to start reaching out to people you'll have lots of resources. Good luck!

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S/O plans after baby - part time jobs

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