Over 500 companies offer option to work from home

MADINAH – The Ministry of Labor and Social Development revealed that 512 companies in 70 cities around the Kingdom are offering new businesses called freelance jobs, or entrepreneurships, that allow individuals to work remotely from home. The jobs are for those who have special skills that multiple companies need and are suitable for women, people with special needs and those who cannot travel to business headquarters. One Saudi designer, Abdullah Al-Husseini, said thanks to technology there is no need for personal interviews any more to convince the employer with one's abilities and skills. "Once the applicant sends a cover letter to the employer with documents to support education and work experience, it is enough to convince the company to accept or reject the person," Al-Husseini said. One Saudi who works from home, Anwar Al-Jilani, said: "Working from home means owning one's freedom, but it does not come without risks. Workers in such fields must have suitable work environments at home so that if things got out of hand, the employer will become aware of the situation immediately because companies depend on these workers in fulfilling their projects." IT expert Adel Al-Qahtani said there are numerous websites that keep track of qualified personnel and specialists and provide economic consultancy and analysis from home. These companies monitor the paid employee and share the salary payments with the company in charge. Social activist Fatima Habib said the Internet is filled with advertisements for various jobs, such as e-commerce, which has become popular online. Social researcher Amani Al-Olayan said working from home was not for everyone. "It requires three remarkable qualities — enthusiasm to finish the required work, respect for schedules and lack of lethargy that leads to accumulation of work," she said. Recent reports from websites like Elance and Odesk revealed that in the United States up to 34 percent of those using the sites rely on self-employment online as a major source of income. The report added that Facebook had conducted several recent studies on plans the companies are currently working on to allow employees to work from home.