Should I Look for Part-Time Work?

Part-time work — for the woman seeking to relaunch, it seems like the ideal solution.  You’re back in the work force, earning a pay check, but you still have time for the kids.  And maybe, just maybe, you won’t even have to get (shudder) child care!  The nice thing — many employers are far more open to the idea than they used to be.  Some companies even encourage it.  They’ve found that part-time employees can be just as effective, if not even more, than full-time employees.  They come in, do their work, and get out of there.  No messing around.

But don’t be fooled — there are drawbacks.  Putting in full-time hours for part-time pay.  Not getting the respect full-time employees get.  Not getting plum assignments.  Fewer, if any benefits.  And enduring the wrath of those who think you’re just not committed.  But wouldn’t it be so nice????

And yet everything I read says don’t seek or ask for a part-time job!  Back on the Career Track by Carol Fishman Cohen and Vivian Steir Rabin says “…don’t look for part-time jobs by responding only to part-time job ads or announcing to your friends and former associates that you’re searching for ‘something part-time.’”  Cohen and Rabin say the goal is to find the right job — one that fits your interests and expertise.  Once you’ve got an employer’s interest, then you can propose part-time work or telecommuting.  But starting out by saying you’ll only work part-time can often get you the door.