This newsletter is distributed to anyone selling in a Slivers-Of-Time
marketplace. Also, to those waiting for a market to start in their area who have registered at www.sliversoftime.com
It will keep you posted on developments in this exciting new way of working. |
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IN THIS ISSUE |
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SELLER IN THE SPOLIGHT: |
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Ready for the Rush |
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Abimbola: store ready. |
It may not be a big story in other parts of the country, but at the end of November, Oxford Street in Central London braces itself for Mega Weekend. That's when the Debenhams flagship store slashes its prices across all departments. They know there's going to be a surge of shoppers. So how do they cope? Slivers-of-Time sellers of course. Mega-weekend can be one of many in-at-the-deep-end experiences that Slivers-of-Time sellers thrive on. But for one particular seller it wasn't at all daunting.
Abimbola Atoyebi [Bookings: 12, Hours Sold:
40, Buyers: 4] already does a part time job for Next. And she's studying. And she has a 15 month old daughter, Avieyuwa. And she's 7 months pregnant. When she needed to find work around all these commitments she – of course – turned to Slivers.
That was good for Debenhams. They trained 14 sellers for 4 hours in anticipation of Mega Weekend and other ad hoc requirements. Abimbola spent her time during Mega-weekend ferrying clothes from changing rooms back to the racks. Other sellers were exhausted at the end of the day. Not Abimbola. “I loved it. I'm used to the rush from Next” she says “it was just like a normal Saturday.”
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SLIVERS FUTURES: |
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Work at Last |
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Slivers-of-Time sellers
working at an event in
Leeds. |
Employers are increasingly advertising “parent friendly hours”. But they're not nearly friendly enough for people like Jane Howarth. Jane, from Leeds, has an 11 year old son with cerebral palsy. She explains: “Frances has 5 consultants, all of whom need to see him at different times, he needs hydro therapy, occupational therapy, orthotics and other treatments as slots become available”.
Jane tried to combine the constant need to take Frances to his appointments with a job. “It was becoming so stressful. I was forever getting into trouble with employers because my son had to take priority. I have tried to find work to fit around his needs. I've shown foreign visitors around the city on a freelance basis. But I really do want some variety.”
As Jane points out: “I have skills and experience that should be used. Not working is socially isolating.” Now Jane has just started Slivers working [Bookings: 5, Hours Sold: 24, Buyers: 3]. And the Slivers Hours Limiter has meant one less thing to worry about. “I receive Carer's Allowance which means I mustn't earn more than £82 a week. If I do, I lose all my benefit”. Slivers can keep her at work, on her terms, at times to suit Frances. |
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TIP: |
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Keep changing your availability! |
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Cartoon by Shamima Aktar Koli, Slivers-of-Time seller
[Bookings: 78, Hours Sold: 273, Buyers: 4] |
Never know when you'll be able to work? Get into a Slivers-of-Time market and just enter availability on the day. Wake up and decide if you can work this morning. This afternoon? Decide after lunch. |
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CASE STUDY: |
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Health check |
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The public want to know about healthcare plans. The government wants to tell them. Someone has to arrange the logistics. At some point in December, the Healthcare for London public consultation document will be ready. Each Primary Care Trust (PCT) within the NHS will get a truckload of them. They'll have to bundle them up with local documents and get them distributed to every household in their area. The NHS is impatient. It's got to be done fast, and the PCT's don't know when their truck will arrive. A definite diagnosis for Slivers!
Mark Docherty is in charge of the operation at Tower Hamlets PCT in East London. He explains: “We've been using Slivers sellers on a variety of assignments, it's good operational sense and it's part of our commitment to spreading health by spreading work through the community we serve.”
Mark is braced for the incoming documents. “My plan depends on when it arrives. I definitely want to get it out the same day. If it comes in the morning, I'll use 10 or so sellers through the day. If we don't get it until lunchtime I'll book 20 or more sellers to turn it all round in a few hours”. How would he have solved this problem without Slivers? “We'd have had to pull experienced, expensive, staff away from their jobs to stuff envelopes”. |
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December 2007
Published on the last Friday of the month |
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Slivers-of-Time: the basics
Marketplaces for Slivers-of-Time are for:
who wants to work around other things in their life, such as:
-childcare
-studying
-part-time work
-caring for adult
-medical commitments
- Organisations who need top-up workers at short notice, for short periods:
-councils
-caterers
-retailers
-logistics supplier
Benefits:
- Sellers: do whatever odd hours of work they want and quickly build skills, experience and a track record they can print at any time.
- Buyers: access a self-selecting pool of local people who choose to work in a way that demands flexibility and rewards reliability.
Signing up:
Anyone who wants to know when a market-place is starting in their area should enter their details at:
www.sliversoftime.com
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