The Most Unusual Flexible Jobs of 2013
As technology continually makes remote employment easier, more and more individuals are finding that flexible work opportunities suit their personal lives and schedules better than a 9-to-5 office gig. Regardless of the reason, the number of people looking to work from home or on a nontraditional schedule is increasing, as is the number of available flexible positions for them.
FlexJobs is an online service for professionals seeking part-time, freelance and telecommuting positions. Job listings on the company's site have increased by 25 percent since this time last year, and CEO Sara Sutton Fell believes it's a sign of the changing job market.
"Every year, I look over the industry changes, and this year, the growth in the number of flexible job offerings really stands out to me," Sutton Fell said. "It's a healthy indication that more and more employers are recognizing that work flexibility is a win both for them and for their employees." [8 Amazing Job Benefits That Keep Employees Happy]
The company, which currently has more than 17,000 job listings, recently released its 2013 list of the most surprising flexible job opportunities posted on its website. The 10 most unusual professional work-from-home jobs on FlexJobs this year were:
Cosmetics formulation chemist
Executive director of tree climbing
Farmers-market outreach coordinator
Holocaust testimony indexer
Membership and horse-show points administrator
National wine educator
Psychometrician
Wild horse and burro program director
Senior mineral geologist
IT security penetration tester
The top 10 surprising part-time jobs of 2013 were:
Neurologist
Government aeronautical charting analyst
Bat technician
Dog musher
Creature technology director
Egg grader
Internet fit model
Surveillance role players
Tyrannosaurus Rex actor
Oyster restoration outreach assistant
"I am continuously surprised at the variety and depth of jobs that offer remote work and other flexible options," Sutton Fell said. "With technology where it stands, it's not unusual to see jobs in fields like health, marketing, accounting, Web development and education that allow employees to work from home, work a part-time schedule, or both. We often see flexible jobs that are far beyond what most people would expect."
According to FlexJobs' 2013 monthly reports, the top five career fields offering flexible options right now are medical and health, computer and information technology, administration, education, and sales. Based on this information, job seekers looking for flexible or part-time positions in the coming year should start their search in these industries.
Originally published on BusinessNewsDaily.
Copyright 2013 LiveScience, a TechMediaNetwork company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
