We’ve seen numerous work trends emerge over the past couple of years, including the great resignation, the great return, quiet quitting, and quiet firing.
Could ‘overemployment’ be next?
Rather than taking on extra hours outside of their day job, overemployed workers perform multiple full-time jobs simultaneously from home. Normally, their employer is none the wiser.
Rising inflation and a minimum wage that’s lagging behind the cost of living in the U.S. is thought to be driving this trend.
Workers stand to gain financially, and they can also gain security through having a second job to fall back on in case of cutbacks. They can gain additional skills, and even enroll in multiple health-care plans.
Workers see it as having the opportunity to have better financial security, secondary insurance, and twice the opportunity to save for retirement.
Of course, it’s not straightforward. Aside from the challenges of balancing more than one job, employees need to keep their second job life secret. Employers have the right to fire anyone caught working for another organization on company time.
It’s a controversial matter. But those currently benefiting from a second income aren’t prepared to give it up anytime soon.
