Flexible jobs with rising pay: 13 flex-friendly gigs with the highest salary bumps in 2016

Many of us have the same dream when it comes to a job: more flexibility and more money. Yet those often feel like mutually exclusive benefits.

Turns out there are jobs that offer both — and Mic has got a list of them. 

The average job in the United States got a 2.4% salary increase between 2015 and 2016, according to the Bureau of Labor and Statistics. To find positions that did far better, the career website Glassdoor ranked occupations by raises in median base pay over that same period, limiting the list to jobs with at least 300 self-reported salaries in its database.

Then flexible jobs search site FlexJobs took a peek at the Glassdoor list and layered on their data to see which occupations offered flexibility, like the option to telecommute or work only part-time. As it it turns out, all 13 jobs had at least some associated listings with flex options.

So here they are: the 13 jobs with the biggest bumps in salary this year, plus the types of flexibility workers can expect.

13. Communications manager

Salary increase: 5% — from $80,000 to $84,000

Flexibility the job provides: telecommuting, freelance, long-term, part-time, temporary

What they do: Communications managers are responsible for a company's, you guessed it, communications. This includes internal and external messaging, so it means being good at both writing and speaking. It also demands an ability to communicate effectively with a wide-range of people, from employees to potential investors. 

12. Underwriter

Salary increase: 5% — from $57,000 to $60,000

Flexibility the job provides: telecommuting, temporary, part-time, short-term

What they do: Underwriters are like the gatekeepers of the insurance world — they decide whether or not you get insurance coverage and, furthermore, what type of coverage a company is willing to offer you.

11. Case manager

Salary increase: 6% — from $42,672 to $45,000

Flexibility the job provides: part-time, alternative schedule, freelance, occasional, telecommuting

What they do: Case managers help onboard new clients and patients at institutions or organizations that offer health treatment plans. They also help come up with said treatment plans and ensure patients stick to them.

10. Marketing coordinator

Salary increase: 6% — from $42,672 to $45,000

Flexibility the job provides: temporary, part-time, freelance, short- and long-term, telecommuting

What they do: Marketing coordinators work on strategies related to marketing, advertising and promotions; they try to maximize sales and/or exposure of a specific product.

9. Claims adjuster

Salary increase: 6% — from $45,000 to $47,500

Flexibility the job provides: telecommuting, freelance, temporary

What they do: These are the people who assess the veracity of insurance claims. They'll investigate information related to a claim to see how much an insurance company should or will pay out — a little bit like a detective. 

8. Admissions representative

Salary increase: 7% — from $42,000 to $44,745

Flexibility the job provides: telecommuting, part-time, freelance

What they do: You might know about this job from Tina Fey's role in the film Admission: An admissions representative primarily handles and interacts with prospective students. They'll help with the admissions process for a school and might even play a role in evaluating the applications. 

7. Data analyst

Salary increase: 7% — from $60,960 to $65,000

Flexibility the job provides: short- and long-term, freelance, telecommuting

What they do: A data analyst typically functions as the master of a company's or organization's data, maintaining it and making sure it's being stored properly and is easily accessible. Sometimes the job necessitates creating the database in the first place. 

6. Media planner

Salary increase: 7% — from $42,164 to $45,000

Flexibility the job provides: freelance, telecommuting, short- and long-term

What they do: This is a multifaceted job: It involves looking at data and being creative to ensure all of a company's advertising and promotional strategies are as effective and lucrative as possible.

5. Registered nurse

Salary increase: 7% — from $63,500 to $68,000

Flexibility the job provides: part-time, freelance, alternative schedules

What they do: Registered nurses are Jack- and Janes-of-all-trades. They evaluate patients, help come up with treatment plans, provide relevant health information, prepare patients for certain treatments and maintain records, among many other tasks.

4. Recruiter

Salary increase: 7% — from $42,000 to $45,000

Flexibility the job provides: telecommuting, part-time, freelance, temporary

What they do: As the title suggests, recruiters keep their eyes out for and find people valuable to a company and then try and recruit them — sometimes this involves a larger recruitment strategy, rather than just plucking out talent one person at a time.

3. Implementation consultant

Salary increase: 7% — from $70,000 to $75,000

Flexibility the job provides: telecommuting, part-time, freelance, short- and long-term

What they do: An implementation consultant oversees the introduction of a new project, anything from strategy to software, and makes sure that whatever that's being launched is done so successfully.

2. Sales manager

Salary increase: 11% — from $66,040 to $73,000

Flexibility the job provides: telecommuting, freelance, short- and long-term

What they do: A sales manager oversees both a sales team and its strategies — for example, coming up with quotas and sales plans for different regions in the country and then making sure those goals are met. 

1. Certified nursing assistant

Salary increase: 11% — from $45,000 to $50,000

Flexibility the job provides: part-time, short-term, freelance

What they do: CNAs help patients with their day-to-day needs, from bathing to meals to taking vitals. They respond to patients' calls and are daily caregivers.

These salaries too paltry for you? Check out Mic's list of the highest-paying US jobs.