Working from home: opportunities and what you need to know

Since the pandemic started in 2020, working from home has become more common in industries such as the digital economy, marketing and communications, education, and human resources

A recent Statistics Canada survey says roughly 40 percent of Canadian jobs can be done remotely, compared with four percent in 2016.

Types of remote work opportunities

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What you need to know as you search for remote work opportunities  

• Type “Remote” in the location box on job boards to find remote job listings.
• Research the opportunities and check for things such as: Is the job ad too short or too long? Does it have spelling mistakes?
• Investigate the facts by exploring the company’s website
• Google WHOIS database (web registering site) and type in company’s name. Is the contact information different?
• Validate from different sources
• Google articles and reviews of the company
• Request information from company itself
• If further investigation is required, contact Competition Bureau of Canada www.competitionbureau.gc.ca or Canadian Anti Fraud Centre www.antifraudcentre.ca.

Benefits of working from home

• Reduce commute time to and from work
• Spend more time with family
• Ability to work from wherever they like – urban/rural/cottage country
• Flexibility in work hours – the ability to run errands or go to medical appointments in the middle of the day

Considerations before committing to working from home 

• What benefits do the companies offer? Do they offer any benefits at all?
• You may have to declare yourself as a freelance contributor and bill the company you work for, You are responsible for remitting CPP and EI contributions and taxes.
• Be aware of time zones – working for an international company means your boss and co-workers may work in other parts of the world. Meetings may be quite early in the morning or late in the evening.
• How do co-workers communicate with each other, and how often? What video platform (i.e. Zoom) or chat platform (i.e.: Slack) is used?
• Are there opportunities to meet a boss or co-workers in person like a retreat or office sharing space?

For more information on employment scams, read The Employment Journey article: Better Business Bureau® (BBB) – The red flags of employment scams

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