Young workers across the country are now experiencing a change in the way employees hire and a new scenario. Many startups now rely on high school and post-secondary school students for work and offer them new ways to earn money for various jobs.
These job assignments could be anything from food delivery to dog waking and laundry pickup. These opportunities are being welcomed enthusiastically by youngsters looking to make a buck.
On-demand services including apps that work similar to Uber help students make an income while they are studying a full course. .“Renting out time, skills and belongings has opened up a whole new world of opportunities. It’s now allowing Canadians to be micropreneurs.” Sheryl Boswell, director of marketing with Monster Canada recently told a major news organization.
Toronto based DateNight is one such online platform. Launched only a year and a half ago, it has around 300 babysitters listed out of which almost 95 percent are students. Students join the platform after hearing about it from friends, job fairs and Facebook.
These online portals offer the young workers flexibility, something they may not find in a traditional setting. Calgary-based on-demand shipment service Vaesto has said in the past that it feels students are easier to hire. They are more flexible and available anytime, the company said. Around 30 percent of Vaesto’s total part-time workers are students.
The young workers earn around $10 for a delivery which may take around 15 minutes to complete. Vaesto also employs full-time drivers who make between $400 and $600 a day for up to eight hours of work. As independent contractors students can fit work into gaps in their schedule and make more money.
“Renting out time, skills and belongings has opened up a whole new world of opportunities. It’s now allowing Canadians to be micropreneurs.” -Sheryl Boswell, Dir. of Marketing, Monster Canada
Students should keep track of the money they make through these freelance sites as it can be easy to lose track of the income when it is not a regular paycheque. Figuring out a budget is a great way to know how much you need to work. Having a goal to use the money you earn with freelance work is essential.
The numbers don’t look bad either, a post-secondary student, working around 40 hours a week from May to September on minimum wages in Ontario will make more than $8000 before taxes.
However it is important to remember that some of these services and apps are still news, so it is essential to know about the protection you will have if anything goes wrong.
For example if you are a delivery driver and get in an accident, what insurance will you use? Most of these services don’t provide worker protections including insurance. Experts feel that if you can get a summer job in the field of your study it would be even better but if you can’t then on-demand work can still matter in the long run.
An employer will look at it positively when he is looking to hire, if the candidate has worked on these smaller jobs while managing his time efficiently.
