I haven’t been much help to readers seeking legitimate work at-home jobs, I’m afraid.  Tons of sites offer job listings for a fee - but who can you trust? In talking to these people I usually come away with a queasy feeling, but no evidence either way. 

Long ago I wrote about Careers from Home, which seemed okay. But then I got some reader complaints and found CFH had some trouble with the Better Business Bureau. Telework consultant Phil Montero wrote an e-book on finding telework jobs that I recommend - but that’s because I know and can vouch for Phil. Overall, I’ve avoided the topic rather than risk making a bad call.   

That’s why I’m pleased to report about The Rat Race Rebellion, a new pay-for newsletter posting legitimate telework jobs. It’s run by Staffcentrix, a company that got its start in 1999 offering training for virtual assistants. Staffcentrix launched the International Virtual Assistants Association that year too, a non-profit organization serving this emerging community of independent contractors. 

In 2000, Staffcentrix began providing virtual assistant training courses to military spouses - one of the best causes I can think of. Typically, these are women who end up in places like Clovis, New Mexico (home to Cannon Air Force Base and Billy the Kid’s gravesite). The economies of base towns are depressed, and employers - who don’t want to hire people who are shipped out in three years - post signs in the window reading “military spouses need not apply.”

 “We took a class of folks who’d be happy to work at the local WalMart for $9 an hour - if they could get that job - and trained them to sell their services for $20 to $30 an hour,” says Michael Haaren, Staffcentrix co-founder and COO.

 In five years, the virtual assistant industry has expanded to include more than 80 areas of expertise, everything from word processing to sophisticated corporate growth consulting. Staffcentrix training classes now attract pediatricians, lawyers, and people with MBAs, professionals whose resumes become marred by long stretches of unemployment and lack a progression of jobs and responsibilities.

“Our training isn’t just the nuts and bolts of how to start a virtual assistant business. We  also help  people know their self confidence needn’t be determined by local economic conditions,” Haaren says.