Companies like American Express, U-Haul, 1-800-FLOWERS and many more continue to seek home-based customer service agents. If you have some retail or other customer service experience, a quiet home office, a landline phone and high-speed Internet, a home-agent job could be a good fit.

Positions range from seasonal and part-time to full-time and permanent. Jobs may also include paid training and benefits. Hourly pay ranges from $8.50 to $20 (with incentives).

Here are a few of the job leads we've seen lately in the customer service field.

—American Express: When people think of American Express, travel agents often come to mind. While the company does hire home-based travel agents, it has been recruiting frequently for home-based customer service agents, as well.

As we write, the company is looking for customer care professionals for training beginning in June. Per the job lead, "In this opportunity, you will ensure extraordinary customer service by promptly and accurately responding to phone calls from existing customers ... You can earn an average of $15.73 per hour or more based upon prior work experience and performance on the job ... Employees enjoy a generous benefits package, retirement programs, along with comprehensive medical, dental and vision plans. Paid training in the comfort of your home ..."

For more, see http://amex.co/15rQbiI.

—Convergys: "We need almost 1,000 agents," the company recently announced. (For disclosure, Convergys is also an advertiser on our Rat Race Rebellion website.)

Per its press release, "Convergys is aggressively hiring nearly 1,000 people to work as home agents to handle customer service phone calls, Web chats, and e-mail inquiries ... Experience in customer service, sales, or technical support is a bonus for applicants applying to certain positions. A strong work ethic and commitment to excellence are also desired. A college degree is not a requirement."

For details, go to http://careers.convergysworkathome.com/.

—NEW Corp.: Per its website, "NEW is hiring Home-Based Customer Care Representatives (CCRs) to take inbound customer service and support calls. As a Home-Based CCR, you help customers from the comfort of your home — answering their questions, troubleshooting problems with their product and arranging service or replacement as needed."

For more, go to https://www.newcorp.com/careers/home_based_ccr.

—Teleflora: Like 1-800-FLOWERS, Teleflora hires seasonal home-based agents. According to its site, "We are hiring a large group of seasonal, work at home agents to take floral orders for Teleflora. As a Seasonal Work at Home agent, you will answer inbound calls during our busiest times of the year — Valentine's Day, Mother's Day and Christmas. You can work all three holidays each year, or just one or two. The choice is yours ..."

As we write, Teleflora is scheduling training classes for the Mother's Day season. "All training is completed online in the comfort of your own home. The recruiting process typically takes 2-5 days to complete. Once hired, you must be able to complete training within 7 days."

For details, see http://bit.ly/Xb7I6Q.

Christine Durst and Michael Haaren are leaders in the work-at-home movement and advocates of de-rat-raced living. Their latest book is "Work at Home Now," a guide to finding home-based jobs. They offer additional guidance on finding home-based work at www.RatRaceRebellion.com. To read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com.