在家辦公機會多，擦亮眼睛防受騙
|
????親愛的安妮：您寫過一篇專欄文章，內容是多年在家相夫教子的全職媽媽如何重返職場。我對這個話題很感興趣，因為我已經做了四年全職媽媽，現在希望能重操舊業，或者至少能有個好的開始。由于我的孩子都還小，所以我很想知道，現在有沒有可能在家工作。不過，我經常聽說大部分關于在家工作的招聘廣告都是騙人的。我怎么才能避免上當受騙？我以前做過的基本都是客戶服務工作。能否在這個領域找一份可在家辦公的正規工作？——瑪麗?盧 ????親愛的瑪麗?盧：自從有了互聯網，美國在家辦公的人數大幅增加，已經超過400萬人。紐約市科技咨詢公司Nemertes Research 稱，1998年至2008年期間，美國“虛擬勞動人口”增加了800%。 ????當然，你能對開出豐厚條件的招聘廣告保持警惕，無疑是明智之舉。因為，正如其他快速增長且難以監管的領域一樣，在家辦公的招聘已經淪為騙子們的目標。 ????求職者如何才能明辨真偽，避免上當受騙呢？RetirementJobs.com是一家針對50歲以上群體的就業網站，近期，該網站的研究人員總結了一則在家工作指南，供會員在線瀏覽。該指南中列出了10個警告信號，幫助人們識別潛在的騙局。如果“雇主”存在以下問題，求職者就得當心： ?????未明確說明求職者的具體工作內容 ?????要求提前支付“新人工具包”或“手冊”的費用 ?????拒絕為求職者提供當面溝通交流的機會 ?????僅要求求職者承擔少量的工作，卻承諾支付高額薪酬 ?????利用公眾人物、幸福個人或家庭的感言吸引求職者 ?????描繪奢華公寓、汽車和游艇 ?????在求職廣告中，突出強調公司擁有大量資金 ?????有欺詐投訴記錄（可查看美國聯邦貿易委員會（Federal Trade Commission）網站，或各州貿易委員會網站） ?????承諾會幫求職者解決經濟困境 ?????無法確定所有人或負責人 ????RetirementJobs.com的報告稱：“這些看起來都屬于常識，但如果一個人陷入絕望或容易輕信他人，這時，任何常識都會被拋到腦后。所有在家辦公的工作機會中，正當合法的僅有約1%。” ????換句話說，如果廣告說得天花亂墜，好到讓人難以置信，十有八九就是騙局。 ????不過，RetirementJobs網站從近500個在家辦公的熱門招聘崗位中，篩選出了111家公司。這些公司可以提供真實的工作機會，共涉及18個領域，包括醫療保健、IT、銷售助理和私人護理等。其中包括雅芳（Avon）、特百惠（Tupperware）和玫琳凱（Mary Kay）等知名公司，但大部分都是名不見經傳的小公司。 ????你提到的客戶服務領域中，指南列出了8家正規公司。按字母順序排名，分別是客戶服務外包公司AlpineAccess.com、虛擬商業服務公司Arise.com、客戶關系維護公司Convergys.com、虛擬客戶服務提供商CustomLoyal.com、醫療文件轉錄軟件技術與服務提供商MedQuist.com、虛擬客戶服務提供商VIPDesk.com、客戶服務提供商WestAtHome.com，以及客戶服務提供商WorkingSolutions.com。 ????帕梅拉?拉?吉雅指出，與坐班工作的求職步驟類似，在家辦公工作崗位的求職也要經歷申請、篩選和面試過程（通常為在線或電話面試），并需要填寫必要的納稅申請表。 ????拉?吉雅于1999年成立了TeleworkRecruiting.com，該網站為在家辦公人士和通過事先審查的1,800多家公司牽線搭橋。 ????她說：“正規的工作不會讓求職者為培訓或工作必需的材料，以及關于工作崗位的信息等掏腰包。應該是公司向員工付錢，而不是相反。”在選擇求職崗位時，只要始終堅持這一原則，就不會上當受騙。 ????你提到找一份在家辦公的工作，是為了能多花時間照顧孩子，關于這種說法，拉?吉雅提出了警告：許多人不切實際地以為，照看孩子，同時兼顧工作，這種一舉兩得的好事輕而易舉。 ????她認為：“不論是在公司還是在家工作，如果小孩子無人照料，工作就無法正常進行。”拉?吉雅建議，即便在家工作，也應該像去辦公室上班一樣，找人幫忙照顧孩子。她強調，試圖同時兼顧工作和孩子，“必然會導致工作質量下降，而雇主很快就會發現這一點。” ????反饋：你是否有過在家辦公的經歷？你對此有何感想？歡迎評論。 ????譯者：劉進龍/喬樹靜 |
????Dear Annie: I was interested in your column about how to get back into the workforce after a long time-out to raise kids. I've been a full-time mom for four years and would like to pick up my career where it left off, or at least try to get my foot in the door somewhere. I've been wondering whether it would be possible to work from home for now, since my children are still pretty small, but I keep hearing that most work-at-home jobs you see advertised are frauds. How can I avoid getting stung? Most of my work experience is in customer service. Can I find a legitimate at-home job in this field? — Mary Lou ????Dear Mary Lou: Thanks largely to the Internet, the number of people working from home in the U.S. has skyrocketed to over 4 million. Between 1998 and 2008, according to New York City tech advisory firm Nemertes Research, the "virtual workforce" grew by 800%. ????Still, you're right to cast a skeptical eye on job ads that make lavish promises since, as with any fast-growing and hard-to-regulate field, this one has attracted its share of con artists. ????So how can you tell the good guys from the bad? Researchers at RetirementJobs.com, a job site specializing in employment opportunities for people over 50, recently put together a guide to working from home, available online to its members, that includes 10 warning signs of a possible scam. Beware of "employers" who: ????? Don't clearly describe the work you would do. ????? Require advance payment for a "starter kit" or "handbook" ????? Won't allow you to speak with an actual person ????? Promise high earnings for little work ????? Rely on testimonials depicting attractive, happy people or families ????? Depict lavish homes, cars, and boats ????? Feature large quantities of money in their ads ????? Have a record of complaints for fraud (Check the Federal Trade Commission's web site, as well as state counterparts.) ????? Promise to eliminate your financial problems ????? Where the owners or principals can't be identified ????"It all seems like common sense," the RetirementJobs.com report notes, "but common sense often goes out the window when you're desperate or just a trusting person…. Only about 1 in 100 work-at-home opportunities is legitimate." ????In other words, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. ????Nevertheless, starting with a list of about 500 widely advertised work-at-home positions, RetirementJobs winnowed 111 companies offering bona fide opportunities in 18 areas, including health care, IT, sales support, and personal care. Some are well-known, like Avon (AVP), Tupperware (TUP), and Mary Kay, but most are less familiar. ????In the customer service category, since you asked, the guide lists 8 legitimate employers. In alphabetical order, they are AlpineAccess.com, Arise.com, Convergys.com, CustomLoyal.com, MedQuist.com, VIPDesk.com, WestAtHome.com, and WorkingSolutions.com. ????The steps involved in starting a real home-based job are similar to those you'd take for an in-person position, notes Pamela La Gioia, including undergoing an application, screening, and interviewing process (usually online or by phone) and filling out the necessary tax paperwork. ????La Gioia runs TeleworkRecruiting.com, a site she started in 1999 that matches virtual workers with more than 1,800 employers that have been vetted in advance. ????"A real job does not ask you to pay them to train you, or for the materials you'll need to do the job, or for information about the position," she adds. "You don't pay them. They pay you." If you stick to that rule when considering possible jobs, you can't go too far wrong. ????One word of caution about seeking home-based work in order to spend more time with your kids: La Gioia says that many people harbor unrealistic notions of how easy it will be to combine child care with job duties. ????"Small unattended children do not mix well in a work setting, whether on site or at home," she says. La Gioia recommends lining up babysitting help just as if you were going out to an office. Trying to concentrate on work and on kids simultaneously "inevitably causes work to be of lower quality, which quickly becomes apparent to employers." Noted. ????Talkback: Have you ever taken a home-based job? How did it work out for you? Leave a comment below. |
最新文章