Telecommuting has made it possible for many Filipinos to skip the commute but still make money from the comfort of home. It also enables you to spend more time with your family, save money on fare and lunch, work in your pajamas and enjoy a flexible schedule.

Many believe that this is just a temporary arrangement though.

Although remote work is growing increasingly common in this digital age, people think it should serve only as a gap-filler in the resume, and that telecommuters will eventually go back to an office setting. There’s an assumption, especially among the older generation, that online jobs are not as stable as office jobs. This kind of thinking often puts off professionals from even trying to telecommute.

As a remote virtual assistant (or VA), should you be worried if your career is not for the long-term? Allow us to help ease your worries and clear up any misconceptions you might have.

The Matter of Government Benefits

Some of the arguments against the longevity of online jobs revolve around the belief that people can’t receive an SSS pension when they retire, can’t apply for a Pag-IBIG loan or can’t make use of PhilHealth coverage.

Brick-and-mortar companies have to follow labor laws requiring them to sign up their employees for government benefits, else their business permits will be revoked. The contributions for these are normally taken out of their salary every payday, although the amount or frequency may vary according to the employer’s preference.

Online employers are mostly based abroad, are not Filipino citizens or are simply not registered here. This means they’re not obliged to follow the Philippine labor code. While the Telecommuting Act or Republic Act No. 11165 has been passed by the Congress, these apply only to Philippine companies.

Freelancers who work project-based or contract-based jobs aren’t offered these benefits by default. However, this doesn’t mean you can’t utilize these services at all. The government does allow self-employed individuals to pay voluntary contributions so you can access loans, pension and more.

The procedures for different government institutions are as follows:

• PhilHealth – Informal Economy Registration procedures
• Social Security System – Compulsory Coverage of Self-Employed Persons
• Pag-IBIG – Voluntary Membership to Pag-IBIG Fund for The Self-Employed, Freelancers, And Non-Employees

If you’d like to make voluntary tax payments to the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), you can refer to the Guidelines and Instructions for the BIR Form No. 0605. This enables you to receive an Income Tax Return (ITR) letter which is useful when processing visas.

The thing is, plenty of VAs actually prefer not paying contributions since they can bring home a larger amount. Rates are sometimes based on international standards too, so VAs can be compensated in dollars or pounds without any deductions.

The Matter of Stability

Another major concern about telecommuting looks into how stable the jobs are.

An office-based company has to follow the rules for terminating employment. This means that they can’t just fire an employee without cause, unless said employee engages in criminal behavior (e.g. fraud, drug use). Workers have to be informed in advance should the company close down as well. Apart from their final pay, they’ll also receive a termination fee so there’s minimal risk of being left penniless when they lose their jobs.

A huge percentage of remote jobs are only for short periods. For instance, you’ll be working until the website has been successfully migrated to its new address, or you only need to produce articles for over a certain duration. Completing one contract means you need to search for another one and the cycle repeats itself.

There are online jobs that last for years though. Digital marketing companies, in particular, like to fill important positions with remote workers. These require you to sign a contract, yet there are no clauses that specify until when you’ll be working for the company. It’s possible to stay with that agency for 3, 5, 10 years or until you decide to retire.

Some clients who are happy with the work you do are likely to hire you for future projects too. Even if the tasks are not year-round, you can at least rest assured that you’ll receive a semi-regular income and not have to keep searching for a client.

Working with an offshore staffing agency like Remote Workmate provides stability too. If you’re hired as one of our remote virtual assistants, we’ll refer you to a client. When the contract with that client is completed, we’ll refer you to another one so you won’t have to.

So, what’s the answer?

Online jobs can be long-term jobs if you’re determined to make them work. But if you want to enjoy government benefits, you’ll have to take the extra effort to pay them yourself. Note that there are numerous remote jobs that are stable as well.

Thus, remote work is a lot like regular jobs. It can definitely be long-term or temporary, depending on the employer and your performance there. It has pros (like not having to deal with traffic to work) and cons (you have to process government benefits yourself). The outcome is mostly up to you.