Some Weeks It’s Lobster, Some Weeks It’s Mac and Cheese

We’re collecting stories from freelancers around the country and sharing them with other members. Share your story and we might feature it on our site. Jenny Troester from Glenside, PA recently shared hers:

I've been a freelance graphic designer in Glenside, PA since 1998. I became an independent worker after I was laid off from a full time job, I had been freelancing on the side, and was then having to crash on a friend's couch while looking for an apartment with my new position. So I filed for unemployment she was told by the government that I had a marketable skill, they helped train me, and helped coach me on how to set up a business. At the time of the layoff I thought it was the worst thing that could have happened, but in hindsight it is one of the best that has.

I love that freelancing gives me flexibility, and the chance to be creative. I know people who don't like what they do, but I have never felt that way. I draw pictures for a living. But my biggest obstacle as a freelancer is always finding work. Having enough clients is hard. And of course, now I don't qualify for unemployment.

Then, in 2009, it was the first year in a decade that my business ran at a negative. It was brutal. In January, no one would even pick up the phone and talk about projects. Even in places where I had always been able to pick up work, they were laying off full time employees. Then after March, people were paring down from what they had been doing regularly, asking me to turn a 28–page catalogue into a postcard. In May it picked up a little and I was able to find temp work, and throughout the summer it was getting better.

In the last year, I'd say that for 11 out of 12 months I didn't have as much work as I needed. I applied for state unemployment benefits after working a temp job July–October and their response was, "You had no income until July so you don't qualify."

I drained my entire savings account and built up credit card debt. I have an appointment to go speak with someone about receiving some kind of government assistance, but finding your way through the government system is confusing. I still haven't found the right person to talk to about food stamps or help with utility payments. Now that I'm temping again I'm not sure I can even apply.

We really need a level playing field for independent workers. An unemployment protection program for freelancers would be perfect. some weeks it's lobster, some weeks it's mac & cheese.