Hello everyone!
I decided to give freelancing a shot, so I signed up with My Shift – a free platform that connects you with freelance work from big retailers and small to medium-sized businesses.
For those who haven't tried it yet, let me break it down.
My Shift allows you to find freelance work near home and plan your schedule yourself. Some of the platform's benefits include:
A wide range of shifts. Vacancies are available for 4 to 12 hours.
No experience required. There are vacancies that don't need any special training.
Quick payments. Payment is made to your card the next day after a confirmed shift.
I did some online research to learn more about the platform.
As I mentioned earlier, to work with My Shift, you need to be self-employed. I already had this status, so I didn't need to worry about it. The app itself pulls in the information after you register. In the app, there's a separate tab for the FNS (Federal Tax Service), where it says your self-employed status is confirmed. There's also a link to the My Tax (official app for self-employed) partner. You accept them as an invitation to the My Shift partner in the My Tax app. On the FNS tab, there's also a section called 'Status of your tax account (professional income tax - the tax self-employed pay).
The documents I added to the app were:
1. Passport.
2. Tax ID number.
3. Social Security number.
4. Bank details.
I didn't add a medical book. It costs money, and I haven't decided if I need it yet.
Once my documents were pulled in, I got access to possible freelance work options.
For example: assembling orders, packing, working at the checkout, working in the sales area, working in the store.
Companies: Pyaterochka, Peresekrestok, Dixy, Russian Post, Magnit, Spar, and others.
Before I started, I had a clear idea of what was expected of me, thanks to the job description card.
I decided to give working at the Crossroads a try and signed up for a shift that lasted 4 hours.
My tasks included:
Assembling orders according to the task - selecting and sorting orders - collecting online orders - verifying orders against invoices, including electronic ones - checking the packaging - controlling expiration dates - weighing the product - working with the terminal - scanning the product - communicating with the customer (agreeing on replacements for missing items) - labeling and placing products in storage locations - preparing orders for loading - delivering products to customers at the pickup point - removing unclaimed products - moving and loading completed orders.
I also had to go through a 17-page training manual. I studied the information.
How my experience went.
My shift started at 6 PM.
I arrived 20 minutes early. As soon as I walked in, I saw a store employee and told them I was there for a part-time job. They directed me to the Order Pickup point, and from there, a woman escorted me to the manager.
The fact that I had no experience in this field didn't exactly thrill the manager, but oh well.
They showed me where the women's changing room was and told me to change. The lockers are metal and supposed to be locked with a key, but the keys were nowhere to be found, and the employees who were changing told me they'd never seen any keys. A kind woman advised me not to leave valuable items in the locker. Thanks a lot.
I took off my top, checked my pockets, and headed back to the manager's office. She worked on my account for about 20 minutes. Then, she took out the TSD – a data collection terminal. It's like a smartphone that scans and automatically tracks product movement at every stage. I entered my phone number, got a code on my phone, entered it, and then saw my last name.
Next, the order I needed to assemble appeared on the device. I assembled the first order with the manager's help. Thanks to her for the explanations and tips. I grabbed a cart.
I've got to say, the process of collecting my order was a bit of a wild ride. You get to see exactly what's included in the order, and then you scan each item as you put it in the shopping cart. The device keeps track of what's been collected and how much is left. You've got to keep an eye on the expiration dates, the appearance of the items, and the time. Everything needs to be in order.
The time limit for collecting is pretty tight. Once you've got all your items, you move on to the packaging stage. You head to the order pickup point, grab some bags, and start packing. You've got to separate the frozen items, the chemicals, and the fragile items. I stuck labels with the order number and the number of bags on each one, and then I placed them on the shelves. I also updated the device with the number of bags.
Meanwhile, the customer would make the payment, and the courier would come to collect the packages. I didn't hand over the packages to the couriers, though – I was waiting for the next order. While I was waiting, I'd often walk around the store, checking where things were stocked. Speed and organization are key when it comes to collecting orders.
On the next day, our manager said that the orders were all sorted, and she closed my shift. I headed home.
But then, the next day, I saw this in the app:
I was a bit stunned, to be honest. I wrote in the chat:
I'm still waiting...
update:
The director of the 'Crossroads' store didn't confirm the shift change. The 'My Shift' app suggested I contact the director in person.
I'm not going to run around after her. I wrote to the Crossroads hotline, and I'm waiting for a response. If I don't hear back, I'll take it to the prosecutor's office.