Techies and Corporates are of divided opinions about moonlighting. Many companies, including Swiggy and Cred, have already allowed their employees to moonlight, provided the work does not conflict with its business and does not affect employees’ productivity.
Rishad
Premji, the chairman of Indian IT major Wipro Ltd., has given his stance on
moonlighting, referring to it as ‘Cheating.’
“There is a
lot of chatter about people moonlighting in the tech industry. This is cheating
– plain and simple,” tweeted Rishad Premji on Saturday.
What is Moonlighting?
Moonlighting
is a term referred to doing a second job secretly along with regular
employment, typically at night.
Fintech firm
Cred has also encouraged moonlighting, adding that its heads of design and
engineering are part of the Carnatic rock band Agam.
A few months
before, IT regulatory body Nasscom had received a complaint that a person in
Noida was working for seven companies at a time. The incident came to light
after the HR manager of one of the firms found multiple active PF accounts.
Many
companies prohibit external work on commercial terms.
Legally
there is no restriction on double employment under the Factories Act. However,
this law does not apply to IT firms in a few states.
On the other
side, HR professionals and legal advisors believe that courts have previously
permitted employers to terminate employment if any employee is moonlighting.
Industry
analysts believe there should be a distinction between a second job and a side
hustle involving a payment. However, it is difficult for employers to
distinguish between a second job and side hustles.
Moonlighting
or a side hustle has become a topic of discussion after work from home has
become mainstream after the pandemic hit the world and people started working
from their homes. WFH gave employees time to think, explore more opportunities,
and do side jobs to earn extra bucks.
