Let's take a look at what moonlighting is.
Moonlighting is basically the act of working for one company while simultaneously taking on additional responsibilities and jobs without bringing it to the employer or the current company. The practice has been opposed by different companies as, according to them, it can impact their productivity during working hours. The word these days is the talk of the town, especially after the COVID crisis, when working from home became normal, and people started moving more toward the dual employment policy.
Moonlighting: Is it ethical or unethical?
There is a split opinion when it comes to moonlighting in the IT sector. Some consider it to be the need of the hour, while some call it totally unethical. While this practice is not legal when taken on during the hours of your primary job, this practice of using your skills outside of work hours has raised a very big question mark in the whole industry's norms and ideas altogether.
While in such a fast-paced environment, everybody needs more expenses to live their life with ease. Also, poor job satisfaction levels are the other obvious reason for moonlighting.
And with all the remote work opportunities, it has become easier to do multiple jobs at the same time.
Especially after the pandemic, when remote culture came into play, the number of moonlighting cases increased due to the spare time people got while working from home. We have all seen a massive rise in this practice in the last few years, and the term "moonlight" has become the new talk of the town.
What are the main reasons for moonlighting?
According to different reports, the main reasons revealed are:
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Extra Money
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Upgrading their capabilities for different job profiles.
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No appreciation by employers
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Utilization of extra time.
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Increase their savings or investments.
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Gain more work experience
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Follow their passion.
What are the contrasting opinions on the practice?
This topic has stirred massive debate amongst different sections of the population around the world. Let's see what the biggies have to say about this-
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Swiggy, a food delivery platform, recently launched its new policy that allows employees to feel free to work anywhere outside their shift timings with the company. This decision has created a discussion on the ethics and legality of this moonlighting practice.
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Nascent Information Technology Employees Senate (NITES), a Pune-based union, says extra freelance work done by an individual after office hours by utilizing their personal resources is "justified".
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Infosys says moonlighting is unethical, but what does this mean for the future of work? "No two-timing, no moonlighting," reads an internal email that IT giant Infosys dashed off to its employees this week. The tech giant even warned employees about moonlighting, which it says could lead to termination.
Different organizations may not want employees to work on multiple jobs while others will not care. Public sector employees must check with any company regulations or laws concerning having two jobs.
Is moonlighting over employment or underpayment still a question to be answered? There is an immediate need to amend the legal statute to regulate moonlighting and prevent the unjustification of the same.
