Welcome to our “Work From Home Q&A” series. You ask a question about remote work, and a guest expert from FlexJobs answers it. You can learn how to ask a question of your own below.
This week’s question comes from Larry:
“Do work-from-home jobs provide the same benefits as traditional jobs? For example, health care, retirement plans and bonuses?”
Freelance versus employee status
Yes, generally, work-from-home jobs provide the same benefits that a similar in-office job would provide. Ultimately, whether benefits are provided depends on the status and hours of the job.
Freelance jobs, whether on-site or work-from-home, offer no benefits. These are also known as contract jobs and 1099 jobs and being self-employed. Rather than working for an employer, the person hired is working as an independent contractor.
Most of the remote job listings we see at FlexJobs are employee jobs, not freelance jobs.
Employee jobs can come with benefits, depending on the number of hours being worked and whether a person is considered a part-time employee or a full-time employee.
Just like in traditional in-office jobs, remote employee jobs may be eligible for benefits like paid sick leave, vacation time, health insurance, life insurance, retirement plans, annual bonuses and so on.
About me
I am a career development manager and coach at FlexJobs, where I help people find flexible work, including remote, part-time and freelance jobs. Before joining FlexJobs in 2010, I was a career adviser for college students and alumni. I have a master of science in human resources management and am a certified advanced resume writer.
Got a question you’d like answered?
You can submit a question for the “Work From Home Q&A” series for free. Just hit “reply” to the Money Talks News newsletter and email your question. (If you don’t already receive the newsletter, you can sign up for free, too: Click here, and the sign-up box will pop up.)
You also can find all past answers from this series on the “Work From Home Q&A” webpage.
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