Job seekers can spend a lot of time and effort when searching for a job. However all this effort may not be immediately fruit fall for them and as such they may have to look at some alternatives while they are job searching. One such alternative available for those trying to find a job includes acquiring a bridge job. Full time jobs, part time jobs, independent contract work, alternate schedule roles, and freelance work can all be bridge jobs.
What is a Bridge Job?
In simple terms a bridge job is a job opportunity available for people looking to fill an employment gap. Bridge jobs can act as a way for people to receive financial support and benefits while they continue to try and find a job. A job search can take a long amount of time and it may not even end up resulting in a job for the job seeker. As such bridge jobs act as a great alternative for these people.
Bridge jobs can be a great job opportunity for those who are returning to the workforce. Sometimes people can take time off because of various reasons like health, personal care ,and caregiving.
Bridge jobs can be a great gateway for an all new long term career shift. A bridge job allows them to test run a new career. They also give people an opportunity to have an income while they pursue further education courses. These people can also work unpaid internships part time while receiving money from their bridge jobs. Bridge jobs facilitate the pursuit of new career paths for those stuck in a rut at their current job.
Bridge jobs are a great job opportunity for people just before and during their retirement. Some people approaching retirement may not be comfortable with a life without work but at the same time they might now want to continue full time at their old job. A bridge job allows the soon to be retired and retirees to slowly shift to a full time retirement life. Bridge jobs allow them to work in a less stressful career while working far fewer hours.
People who have had to leave their job because of furloughs, layoffs, being fired, and not being satisfied with the employment situation can use bridge jobs. Bridge jobs help job seekers fill in gaps that come with the sudden loss of employment.
What are the pros that come with having a bridge job?
People who have a bridge job receive a lot of benefits that make it a great job opportunity. These pros to having a bridge job include:
- One of the primary benefits for someone having a bridge job is the salary earned. While job seekers are looking for a job, they get to earn money while doing so. This helps with the cause as they get to continue to try and find a job without worrying about the financial burden that comes with it. Bridge jobs also provide benefits like medical and health insurance and a retirement fund through their bridge job.
- Bridge jobs allow individuals to take a bigger job in their field of interest. Sometimes job seekers don’t have the necessary experience for a particular job and as such these bridge jobs help them get the necessary experience. The individual can continue to grow through the bridge job as they keep adding to their list of skills through the work experience.
- People with bridge jobs get to experiment a little to take a similar job in a different space. Bridge jobs allow them to pivot to different variations along a career path and those with the job opportunity get to experiment and try what new career path will work out for them. Through bridge jobs people can experiment by taking up a new job while having a clear specific exit date.
- Those who are job hunting but face problems because there isn’t a full time job opportunity available can use a part time bridge job at the same company or organization. They can add to their experience and skill set while receiving a salary. This part time bridge job can help the person land a full time job at that company or organization.
- Freelancing and consulting bridge jobs can land people the needed experience and skills to start their own practice. The bridge jobs allow these people to build valuable contacts through networking. The bridge jobs also allow people to account for their time spent and there will be no employment gaps for the job seeker.
- It build up a person’s confidence level as a fruitless job search can severely affect a person’s confidence level. The bridge job allows a person to work on themselves while receiving confidence from having a job and not being unemployed.
- It give job seekers some time to figure out their next move without any pressure that comes from not having a steady income. Through the bridge job they get time to work on their own skills and gain valuable real world experience. People receive time to themselves in a low pressure situation to understand themselves better.
What are some of the cons that come with having a bridge job?
While a bridge job can be a great job opportunity for most people with a lot of benefits, there are some cons that come with it. Job seekers who might want to look to get a bridge job have to keep in mind the cons like:
- Bridge jobs are meant to be temporary stop gaps in between trying to find a job for people. However people can grow complacent and comfortable when they don’t try to move on to a better job opportunity.
- While many of the benefits of bridge jobs are that it allows people time and resources to plan for a career change, a bridge job is still a job. As such they still have responsibilities and tasks that they need to complete in time which can hinder their job search.
Conclusion
A bridge job has many different benefits for job seekers as it helps them fill the gap in their employment history. As more and more employers have started placing extreme emphasis on candidates not having any gaps in their employment history, bridge jobs are a great option for those trying to find a job.
