Workers use short 'gigs' to create patchwork jobs

NEW YORK -- Simone Sneed has been a brand ambassador for a telephone company, a backup singer in a local theater, a freelance grant writer and a psychic in a scavenger hunt -- all for a day.

Sneed found those jobs and many others in Craigslist's Gigs section, where she finds work for a few hours or a day to earn extra cash.

At a time when many Americans are having trouble finding one job, some intrepid jobseekers like Sneed are creating a patchwork quilt of many, short-term gigs found through Craigslist and other sites where companies and individuals seek part-time help.

When she didn't get tenure, English professor Diana Bloom used the website's Services section to advertise herself as a tutor, editor and translator-for-hire. She's been able to make a living that way since 2002 while staying home with her young son.

She did all that without ever having to pound the pavement.

TIM ROSKE ~ Associated PressSimone Sneed checks online listings Thursday for a new apartment from her home in Latham, N.Y. Sneed uses Craigslist's Gigs section to finds jobs for a few hours or a day to earn extra cash to pay bills and student loans.

"I'm not very outgoing and getting my foot in the door to companies would have been hard," said Bloom, of New York.

But for all the ease the site offers, most gigs and part-time work offer no health benefits, no sick days, no paid vacation. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the number of people employed part-time for economic reasons, also known as involuntary part-time workers or the "underemployed," rose by 787,000 in February, reaching 8.6 million. That is up from 4.9 million the previous February.

Job postings are down overall on Craigslist, the most-used job board in the U.S., said Jim Buckmaster, chief executive officer of Craigslist.org. But postings for short-term gigs are up.

To find enough work, Bloom posts her ad every three days, as the site allows, which keeps her ad near the top of the list where people will see it. Craigslist does not allow exact versions of the same ad to be cross-listed, so Bloom also created a vast repertoire of ads, each with different wording, so that she may post her services in different geographic areas and subject areas.

On the Net

• Craigslist: www.craigslist.org
• Diana Bloom, freelance tutor: mysite.verizon.net/dianabloom/
• Simone Sneed's blog: www.brownskinlady.com