Moonlighting: Tips for workers
Moonlighting is about having another paid job alongside your main job. It’s become very popular in the UK recently, particularly since the increase in remote working, which has given people more flexibility to try it out.
However, if you’re thinking of moonlighting, you also need to think about the potential repercussions on your main job and on your personal life, and also your need to comply with employment law.
What is moonlighting?
Moonlighting refers to the practice of having a full-time job, and taking on a second job (and sometimes even a third one). When the term moonlighting was originally coined, it referred to taking on a second job in the evening or at night, during ‘moonlight’ hours. Moonlighting nowadays takes various forms, usually defined as much by the amount of time you devote to it, as by what time of day you undertake it.
The moonlighting spectrum ranges from:
- ‘quarter moonlighting’ where you do a part-time job as well as your main full-time one, through
- ‘half-moonlighting’, where you work in a second job for half or more of the time you have free after you’ve finished your primary job, to
- ‘full moonlighting’ where you try to carry out two full-time jobs at the same time.
Why moonlight?
You may choose to moonlight for a variety of reasons, such as:
- financial need because the income from your main job is not sufficient,
- you want job security at a time of uncertain employment conditions,
- you need to repay debts,
- you wish to explore new career opportunities before you give up your main job and move to a new career,
- you want to spend more time doing something that’s a personal passion, but isn’t (yet) financially viable as a single full-time job.
Legal and ethical aspects of moonlighting
From a work/professional point of view, moonlighting can result in conflicts of interest between your main and secondary job, risks of you breaching confidentiality (even though unintentionally), and also your potential misuse of company resources.
Your main employment contract may contain clauses that restrict or totally prohibit you from having another job. If you are permitted to take on another job, but are restricted about the kind of second job you can do, then talk initially to your manager and/or HR department about it. They might even be able to suggest some changes to your plans which you find acceptable, and then you’ve got nothing to hide or be secretive about.
If your contract prohibits you from having any other kind of secondary employment, and you decide to go ahead with a second job anyway, you will be in breach of your employment contract. If that’s the case, and your employer finds out about it, then be prepared to be disciplined or even dismissed.
If your contract doesn’t stop you from having another job, you also need to ensure you follow rules set out in your main employment contract about matters such as:
- confidentiality (eg not divulging commercially sensitive secrets when you’re carrying out your second job),
- not working for or helping competitors in any way (eg breaking any ‘non-compete’ clauses in your contract),
- using resources belonging to your main employer and provided only for that employment, when you are undertaking your secondary job (and vice versa).
The additional income from moonlighting could also alter your tax situation, so you would need to consider the tax implications and HMRC (HM Revenue and Customs) reporting requirements about your additional income.
Work-life balance and moonlighting
On a personal level, the effort of balancing multiple jobs with your personal life can result in increased stress and anxiety, lower productivity, a reduction in your work-life balance and you becoming ill as a result.
However, while we wouldn’t champion moonlighting, it can be done if you’re fairly tough mentally, and can also be really strict with yourself about how you use your time. For example:
- Set and keep to specific hours for each job.
- Prioritise self-care and ensure you have enough free time to relax.
- Make clear boundaries between your work duties and your personal time – don’t try to mix the two.
- Maintain a good balance between your work and personal life.
