Why part-time and temporary jobs are perfect for Gen Z job seekers
If you’re a member of Generation Z, temporary jobs can often be the first step in a successful career. Temp jobs help you grow your skills and experience, which looks great on a resume and helps you explore your career options. Below we share three ways that you can benefit by working temporary jobs and how you can find the right fit for you.
- Gain skills to improve your employment prospects
- Support your educational goals
- Test different career paths
Gain skills to improve your employment prospects
Working a temporary job allows you to gain valuable skills and experience you’ll need for the future. If the job is in your planned field, it provides a platform for a more competitive salary.
Meanwhile, taking temp jobs in a variety of fields also has many benefits. It allows you to develop communication and problem-solving skills, for starters. You’ll also gain confidence by going into an unfamiliar setting and learning how to adapt. That confidence will serve you well as you move forward in your career.
Support your education while keeping a flexible schedule
Close to 70% of all college students work while enrolled, according to the Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce. If you’re in school or planning to earn a degree, a temporary job provides money for college tuition or next semester’s books. Each paycheck also helps you learn to budget, stretch your earnings and determine what expenses are unnecessary. These money management skills will help you throughout the rest of your life, from balancing out car payments and rent to credit cards and mortgages.
Balancing a temporary job with your other responsibilities also shows potential employers that you work well under pressure and know how to multi-task. Also, these temp jobs can teach time management skills. Knowing what tasks you need to accomplish in a set period and completing them through planning, organization and prioritization. These skills can only be taught through practice, not in a classroom.
Test out different career paths
In a 2021 poll, Fast Company found that 59% of people were interested in switching careers. Meanwhile, almost a third of Americans 25 to 44 switched careers after their first post-college job. Temporary jobs provide a way of testing different career options.
- In hospitality or retail jobs, you might find out you have a knack for sales or customer service.
- Jobs in construction can reveal a talent for engineering and design.
- An event job, such as usher or ticket-taker, lets you use your people skills, which may lead to rewarding roles in the world of live events.
Temporary jobs offer a wide view of the many career options you have available. Even if you’ve decided on a path, they allow you to hone many of your talents, discover new ones or reconsider your career direction. Plus, your co-workers and managers can become references and contacts, helping you build a network.
How to find jobs that are part-time and flexible
For today’s Gen Z job seekers, PeopleReady gives you complete control over how and when you work with our app, JobStack. After uploading a single application, you’ll have access to temp jobs in your area 24/7. You can search for jobs that work with your schedule, whether you’re available days, nights or weekends.
JobStack gives you access to part-time and temp jobs in some of today’s most exciting industries: hospitality, events, retail and many others. Even better: For some jobs, you can be paid as quickly as up to 24 hours. The majority of our jobs offer weekly pay.
