working from home?

Lauralynne8123 · February 2014

Anyone have any suggestions on how to find legitimate 100% work from home jobs?

gcama85 · February 2014

I've seen this question asked before and most people said their WFH jobs were ones that started out in the office and then transitioned to work from home. I think it's pretty difficult to find a legitimate WFH job right off the bat.

Lauralynne8123 · February 2014

Yeah, I actually have a job now with the capability to work from home but they are not being very flexible about it. Kinda getting worried that they will not let me work from home after 2-3 weeks of maternity leave until I can come back into the office after my 6 weeks. (it is unpaid and not eligible for FMLA-I don't think I'm asking that much since most new moms take the full leave if they are able to) Also having some issues trying to work out when I can take my son to daycare because they do not open for drop-offs until after I am scheduled to start work in the morning. I offered to make up the time after my shift is supposed to end for the day (which should be no more than 20-30 mins) but it seems to be a major issue for them even though one of my coworkers works from home most mornings and goes in to the office after his kid goes to school and also stays home to work on school holidays so I'm wondering if there is some kind of favoritism at play there I don't know but I'm getting very frustrated. That plus some other issues going on there that I won't get into here, I just don't know what to do right now. Not sure how hard it would to be to get hired elsewhere since I am showing now as well. =\

Lauralynne8123 · February 2014

I might add as well that I had to go to the doctor's office to get looked at since I was sick and hadn't felt the baby move much for a few days and was gone for a couple of hours, I used my lunch hour and then worked an additional hour after my shift to make up for the time. They were way more worried about the work that needed to be done than the health of me and my baby it seemed. I can understand their point of view to an extent but still...I would not have gone had I thought it unnecessary and something that could wait. Hoping I don't go into labor at work!

banks81 · February 2014

I work from home, but was working at the company for 5 years prior to that. Most people I know that work from home are able to do so after they have proven themselves at that company. With that said, I'm sure there are companies out there that would hire directly as a work from home situation. Just depends what industry you are looking at. Also, I'm not sure what your reason is for working from home, but I would definitely recommend having some sort of day care situation set up for when you are working. I am still pregnant with my first but can't imagine I would get anything done if I didnt have a full time day care plan.

Iblamethebeer · February 2014

If you're taking your baby to daycare anyway, is there a reason you need to work from home?

It sounds like your company is really rigid about hours requirements, and an office position with more schedule flexibility might make your life easier.

banks81 · February 2014

I will also add that it is up to your employer if they want to give you the flexibility you are asking for. It may not be fair, but they don't have to give all employees the same flexibility such as WFH and making up hours. I know there are people in my department that my boss would not allow to work from home. It's very much a case by case basis.

redjellybean128 · February 2014

My current job has always been work from home. I work for a small company and I will say this about my experience with flexibility. For the most part, with doctor's appointments, other appointments, etc. I found my in office job prior to this one was much more flexible. It's a lot harder to take a sick day and forget snow days. Because I work for a small company, i'm also not eligible for FMLA or STD (but I am getting a short unpaid leave) or other benefits. I also end up working longer hours. Most days, I work 8-6 and eat lunch at my desk. When we are busy, I've worked 12 hour or longer shifts, plus weekends. So while it's nice being able to work in yoga pants, there are most definitely a lot of trade offs. I'm still trying to figure out what is going to happen when I return from leave in June with regards to the long hours.

To answer your question, I would look at websites like flexjobs.com and also search the regular sites like indeed.com, monster, careerbuilder etc.. and play around with keywords like telecommute or virtual, and work from home. I would also consider consulting. That would allow you more flexibility.

Lauralynne8123 · February 2014

Ok, thanks for the responses! Sounds like maybe I'm better off to stay and try to work something out with them. I was looking for a work from home position so that we might not have to pay the daycare and I could still look after him while making extra income, but I'm sure I am underestimating the time it will take to look after him while working. I am a FTM and pretty much clueless about everything at this point, I'm sure I will learn quickly though when the time comes! To make ends meet, I do need to be working if possible to some capacity during maternity leave if I am able to.

jf198400 · February 2014

I would just look for a new job similar to the one you are in now, and ask questions about the companies policy on WFH and flex hours. I have been in the same career for 7years and at each of the 3 companies I have worked for they have all had different degrees of flexibility and Wfh.
Lots of women on this board have changed jobs while pregnant. Since you don't have Fmla or paid maternity leave at your current job, there's really no reason to stay.

What time are you supposed to start work In the morning? Is your SO able to drop LO off? Can you find a daycare that opens earlier? Hire a sitter to watch LO until DC opens? Look at all of your options to see if you can make it work, since your employer seems unwilling to work with you on this.

Cooper81 · February 2014

I WFH one day every other week. Mainly because my commute is an hour, hour fifteen each way, so WFH gives me back at least 4 hours a month to run errands, do stuff around the house, and my boss is awesome. We have a specific telework agreement that is agency wide and one of the many parts of the agreement is that if you have children, child care is provided during your working hours. There is no way I could get my job done with my kids at home with me. when they were teeny tiny I might have been able to get more done than now that they are mobile, but even then it would have been interrupted by feedings and diaper changes.

jesuisfatiguee · February 2014

I got a job with some WFH capabilities when DS was 8 months old. Honestly, it would have worked better WHF for the first 3-4 months, but once they reach a certain age, they demand a lot more of your attention beyond simply snuggling or nursing. It's nice that I don't have to take sick days or PTO when DS has a fever or there's a snow day, but those days are so stressful, and I feel like I'm working at 30% productivity at work AND as a mom.

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