The people who assist stranded drivers need some help now and again, too.

So David Hughes, the executive vice president of AAA North Jersey, uses independent call center agents to cover for his staff of about a dozen, especially when bad weather makes it tough for them to make it to their Wayne office.

"It's a backup for periods of high volume, but we utilize the service continually because we're not paying unless they take our calls," Hughes says of the trained agents Florida-based Arise Virtual Solutions provides AAA for about $2.50 per call.

The move, Hughes says, has allowed AAA to "cut back on staff" without letting service slip for its customers who may need a tow or other road assistance.

"We have to provide service to our AAA members when they call in," says Hughes, "and we would prefer them not to wait more than a minute or two. Using Arise has allowed us to be more flexible with our staffing and to have almost guaranteed service."

The Arise business plan is simple: The company will train and certify people who are looking to work for themselves from home for a fee of about $100. It then connects those agents with large companies, like Walgreens and Home Depot, that are looking to outsource their customer service, IT or sales operations.

With an initial investment of a few hundred dollars, which includes the training and some materials, just about anyone with a computer and desire to set their own work schedule can become an "Arise certified professional." Essentially, it means incorporating on your own and getting work through Arise's pipeline of organizations that seek independents to handle customer service, sales or technology jobs. For an hourly wage and no benefits, trained agents can make their own hours and work from home.

Clifton 's Jasmin Pirkl, at the urging of a friend, became an Arise agent last year to supplement her full-time work as a customer service agent for Delta Airlines at Newark Liberty International Airport. These days, when she's not dealing with complaints about lost luggage or late arrivals, she's often talking from home with Walgreens customers who need help using automated prescription services or digital photo software.

Pirkl works from home for the drugstore chain for somewhere between 20 and 30 hours each week, usually earning about $400 weekly before taxes.

"I love it," says Pirkl. "I get to make my own hours and make some money from my own home."

For information, visit arise.com