Faces of the part-time economy: how to survive without full-time work

Part-time work is the best recourse for more and more Americans, turning them into freelancers, students and distillers

jim beam whiskey distillery kentucky
Jim Beam employees along a conveyor belt in the bottling plant at the Jim Beam Bourbon Distillery on January 13, 2014 in Clermont, Kentucky. Photograph: Luke Sharrett/Getty Images

The rocky recovery since the Great Recession has been marked by fewer full-time jobs, lower wages, and the rise of part-time work. "Since the end of 2007, the number of employed workers who work part-time but want full-time jobs has increased about 4.3m, or more than 70%," Brookings pointed out recently.  

The real-world dynamics of living on part-time work, however, aren't told in the statistics. Some take part-time work because they can't find full-time jobs; others, because they're going to school; others yet, because they fell into the part-time life and liked it better. We talked to some part-time workers to find out how they make it work.

Steven Lowell
Steven Lowell says of his life as a part-time worker, "it's highly budgeted. I keep track of every single thing." Photograph: /Steven Lowell

Steven Lowell, 40, New York, NY 

How are you making a living right now? 

I worked for a website for about six years. I was hired as a customer service manager who ended up blogging. I quit that job in January to see if I could do something new. But the job market is very tough, so in April of last year, when I got a call from one of our competitors, and he wanted me to be a part-time blogger for him, I took that. I'm doing that, 20-25 hours a week. I'm at a point where I'm trying to figure out what to do next.

How else do you make money? 

I do some part-time voiceover work. I have recording equipment at home, and the jobs appear on websites. Say you were doing a web video on your website. You'd post a script and I'd read it from home with soundproofing equipment. I'd send that audition in and if you like it, you'd hire me for it. 

How much does voiceover pay?  

The bigger companies that have a lot more money and require professional reads, major networks or film or ad agencies, they pay a lot better. But if it's a smaller business, a startup website, or someone who wants their blog read out loud, those jobs pay very little. They pay only $100-300.  

Are you making enough to live? 

Not really, but it's highly budgeted. I keep track of every single thing. I don't really have a cushion for me to take any time off. 

How does that compare to before, when you were working fulltime?  
Working fulltime, I was working 60-70 hours a week. It was a lifestyle. I was answering emails in bed when something would go wrong. I was on call – I felt like a fireman – if anything came up with the website, I had to stop what I was doing and deal with it. It was very difficult part-time. I've got a lot of energy and I'm a workaholic, so it's been hard for me to slow down. I used to answer about 5,000 emails a month and I was in charge of so many things; to slow down has been an adjustment. 

So would you work fulltime again?  
Yes, absolutely. I've applied to about 100 jobs in the past year.  I hadn't been unemployed since 2003 so I was really out of game shape for what it was like to look for work. I didn't know how to apply for jobs. I think when I was applying in the beginning, it was hard because I didn't know how I was being perceived. Then I got some help, looking for work online has been more difficult than I expected. It led to a lot of spam and telemarketing, people that would say "We have all these jobs for you," and then they'd try to sell me on classes. 

What kind of work are you looking for? 
I'm looking for writing and customer service management jobs. I went to college for acting, I don't know if that was really a good idea. But when you go into acting it's not exactly a job you're guaranteed employment in, you have to pick up other jobs. So I've worked in so many different fields that I sometimes get confused about what I'm qualified for. But I've found that the things I've done most are customer service and quality assurance.

Do you regret quitting your full-time job?  

I don't regret leaving as much as the way I left. I thought a bit with my heart instead of with my head. I was upset about the way the company was going and I took it a bit personally and I said, "All right,  I'm out of here," and I split. It wasn't the smartest thing to do. 

So you're making it work, on the blogging and voice work?  
With the blogging and voiceover work, it makes me break even, and then any extra, I'm using to pay down my student loans and my credit cards. I'm paying them off, but I don't use them anymore. This year has been a tough lesson in budgeting, and now I don't spend money I don't have. I don't regret it, because when I do work again, I'm going to be a lot smarter. 
Tonya Whitaker: "I've been thinking, should I drop out of school and go get a full-time job or something?" Photograph: /Tonya Whitaker

Tonya Whitaker, 39, Plano Texas

Tell me about your life right now.

I'm a single mom with three kids, a 10-year-old and eight-year-old twins. This is my second year in school. I started writing my masters today actually. Since I'm just writing my thesis, it's kind of part-time now, I decided not to take out any loans for this semester, to just cover my  tuition with grant money, because I hope there is chance of me getting full-time work. 

But for the past two years I've been taking out loans. I didn't think I'd be in school this long. I get to walk in May, but I have to defend my thesis in August of this year. I've been thinking, should I drop out of school and go get a full-time job or something, but my boyfriend said, "No, you've taken this time to get to this point, you've made it this far."  

How are you paying your bills? 

It's hard. Last semester I was teaching as an adjunct. I'm doing accounts payable and payroll for a tax preparer.  There's lots to pickup, I just learned she's going to give me more hours, but it's not full-time. And I'm looking forward to my own income tax return. I know you're not supposed to live off it, but it's so hard right now. 

This month, I don't know where the rent is going to come from. I really don't know. I just wing it. Last month it was okay because I still have money leftover from my teaching job, but this month is tough, it's real tough. 

Are you getting any other kind of assistance? 

 I get Snap, so the food is taken care of. I receive child support for my eldest child. Support for the twins have yet to be established because I moved and I cannot afford an attorney to have the case transferred to the county that I currently reside. I do not have health insurance, but the kids receive Medicaid.

What kind of work do you hope to get? 

 I would like a full-time job teaching English to college students. But I was a journalist for 13 years before I decided to go back to school, so those are my skills, but journalism jobs are hard to come by. I could go back to accounts payable full-time but I didn't go to school for two years to do accounts payable.  

Why did you decide to go back to school?  

For a better life. I'd been working in journalism for 13 years, I wanted to get away from the town where I was, I wanted a change of scenery and I wanted the kids to go to better schools. I made the sacrifice for me and my kids, they can get a better education here. I want the best for them and the best for me. But I'm sacrificing a lot, leaving a full-time job at a community newspaper and moving here.

Alan Kipping-Ruane
Alan Kipping-Ruane: "I have to constantly hustle just to feel like I'm gaining an inch on ground anywhere in my life." Photograph: /Alan Kipping-Ruane

Alan Kipping-Ruane, 26, Reading, Pennsylvania  

How are you living right now?  

I was in the navy for five years. I flew in the back of helicopters, but got out after a yearly physical revealed I was colorblind – somehow it had been overlooked for five years! But that year they caught it, and the navy had been given the direction to trim the fat, this was after the market crash in 2008, so I was let go. Now I'm in school.  

The Navy pays for my education through the post 9/11 GI bill , and it covers tuition and gives a housing stipend, but it's still not enough to live off of, so I do coaching and I also do officiating for races. 

What is your living situation?  

 My parents live an hour and a half away from school, and the cost of driving back and forth is too great, so it's cheaper for me to live close to school, so I'm in an apartment. 

What was it like to go from financial security in the Navy to being a student? 

In the navy it's a structured life – we are told what to wear, what to do, when to be at work. Then going to the academic world, you can do whatever you want, wear whatever you want, and they don't take attendance! So there were many lifestyle changes to adjust to, and then on top of that, not having a regular paycheck.  

How did you get into coaching? 

 I was an elite swimmer through high school, and I was a lifeguard in high school, then I did rescue jumping out of a helicopter for the navy. I started doing triathlons on deployments, and then I started to coach people, and now I'm going to school to study exercise science. I cater strictly towards endurance athletes, people who are doing mud runs, triathlons, Iron Mans.  

People come to me because they want to run faster, swim faster, or maybe they want to do an Iron Man and they come to me to get them ready for that with training and nutrition. I have clients that pay me monthly, but I also have clients that I don't charge at all.  Right now I'm working with a guy who lost his leg in Iraq and he's preparing for Rio 2016, for the paralympics. 
I would say I spend 20-25 hours on school work and then 30 on coaching. When we get closer to the summer, I'll be officiating races, so that will be a little extra cash, too. 
What are you plans  for after graduation? 

Expand business. My dream goal would be to work in the military as a physical therapy assistant or working with veterans, getting them back to normal. I want to grow my business.  

Tell me what it's like not to have a steady paycheck. 

It sucks. If my friends want to go out I either have to tell them no or I feel bad that they pick up the tab. I know the housing assistance helps, but it only helps so much. I have to constantly hustle just to feel like I'm gaining an inch on ground anywhere in my life. 

I think part of it is that I am a veteran – I'm not using this as an excuse, but many veterans are told they are overqualified. I've tried to work at Lowe's, Home Depot, Starbucks, local gyms – I was told they didn't have a place for me. And you see that with a lot of veterans. 

Ian Waite
Ian Waite: "Living alone is definitely a luxury you have to work hard for anywhere in the world when you're not splitting bills, splitting rent." Photograph: /Ian Waite

Ian Waite, 47, Portland, Oregon

What is your job right now?

I have two jobs, one part-time at New Seasons Market and another part-time with New Deal Distillery. The New Seasons job is two days a week, and I get all the benefits of working in a grocery store, which is a discount, free stuff, and the health plan. I don't really use it, but it's good to have; it's a good plan. And two days is good. It doesn't get too overwhelming, with the muzak and the neon lights. 

I used to work full-time there, and it's too much if it's five days a week. With New Deal Distillery, I work more in the summer. I do farmers markets and I do liquor store tastings and I work in the tasting room at the distillery. Those are shorter shifts, 10-15 hours a week. I get a free bottle of liquor every week, so that cuts that bill. It's a growing company. 

What do you like about part-time work?

It stops you from calcifying in one position. Working in the liquor store, I'm opened up to the other local distillers, bars, farmers markets, this constant stream of new contacts. As far as lifestyle choices, if you're not going to do the house and family thing, staying as a renter gives you freedom to move around, to save money to travel. 

Why did you make the transition from one full-time job to two part-time ones?

The catalyst was going traveling. I went to India. It was easier for me to make the jump to part-time because I work for a progressive company and they allow you a three-month absence and once you come back they give you a month to find work in the stores. 

Sunday is technically my tenth anniversary with this company. Being able to work part-time allows me to keep that up, keep up with my work here. 

Would you work more shifts if you could? 

I do pick up shifts here and there, if I could get up to 20 hours a week my health plan payment goes down drastically. Below 20 hours it costs me $184 a month, but if I went up to three days it would come down to $68 or $65, which would be a huge savings. 

Emotionally, is working part-time better?

I essentially have two days off a week, so it's a much better experience. I think the modern world is still stuck in the five-day working week, and I think everyone would agree it's too much, it takes it toll at the end of the day. I think if I was going to be working five days, it would have to be six hours a day.

Living alone is definitely a luxury you have to work hard for anywhere in the world when you're not splitting bills, splitting rent. Previously I was essentially a lodger, staying with a couple I know in their house. Each job has its different perks. If I were in the hospitality industry I'd get tips. But our store pays a decent wage compared to other retail. So I think working part-time can work. 

For some people working part-time is their only option, but for me it's a choice I can make. I'm pretty frugal. I buy all my stuff at Goodwill. I'm not obsessed with having a different meal everyday. But there are luxuries I can't afford. 

Did you have to make lifestyle changes when going from full-time to part-time?

When I was full-time, I was paying off credit card debts. It was pretty much only when I paid off that credit card that I started accumulating money, that I was able to make the decision to go traveling, and then come back and live the life I want to be living.

Cara O'Regan
Cara O'Regan: "I've tasted the sweet sweet nectar of working for myself." Photograph: /Cara O'Regan

Cara Regan, 26, Rockland County, New York

How do you make your living right now? 

I work 20 hours a week for an IT firm doing customer relationship management and marketing work, and I also work about 5-10 hours a week doing freelance work for another marketing firm. 

I left a full-time job in retail about two years ago this month. I had been there for about four years and it was not for me. The financial crisis happened my senior year of college; I didn't have a lot of options when I graduated, so I stayed with retail.  

I left for a contract job in NYC where I was commuting three hours a day. Then my mother broke her shoulder and needed someone to take care of her, so I moved to Pennsylvania and was technically unemployed while taking care of her. When I moved back, I started freelancing for a marketing company and then started trying to make my own job. Then in September I took this part-time job at an IT firm. I was making it work freelancing but it wasn't reliable: one month I'd make $3,000, the next month, only $200. 

And you're making it work? 

I'm managing to survive by generosity and sheer good luck. My boyfriend's parents have an apartment in the basement and they don't make us pay rent – which is amazing, and the only way I'm surviving as an adult. We've been here a little over a year. I had been living by myself in an apartment in New Jersey, and the struggle to make rent every month was too much. 

What bills do you have?

Car insurance, my car is 10 years old and I don't owe anything on that. Health insurance is my biggest one, through again it's happening through the generosity of others, my mother is helping me pay for that at the moment, otherwise I wouldn't have it. Everything except for rent or utilities. Credit card bills.

Are you living off of credit? 

Thankfully, no. At this part-time job I'm making slightly more money than I was working full-time in retail, so I haven't gotten into too much trouble with credit cards. 

Do you want to have a full-time job again? 

Honestly at this point, not really, I'm not particularly interested in working full-time again. I've tasted the sweet sweet nectar of working for myself, and the idea of going to an office everyday and being there for 40 hours a week is not tempting at all. If I can engineer my career in a way that I don't have to do that, I'm going to try. Though to have employer sponsored health insurance again would be amazing, the perks of working in bed are pretty sweet. 

Is there a deadline for moving out of the rent-free apartment? 

We don't have a firm deadline. On my Mint.com account I do have a goal set up to save $10,000 in 18 months. I think that's a little ambitious but that's how much I want to save before I move out. And there is no rush. My boyfriends' parents are so wonderful and I really couldn't ask for a better situation. 

My boyfriend was "freelancing" as a 1099 employee but working full-time for a company for two years and now they brought him on as a full-time employee. But because my employment status is still so nebulous, we don't want to move out until we both have solid foundations in our careers.