Sneaky 'daylighters' risk firing by working extra jobs - CNN.com

I must confess I have snuck in a freelance coding job from time to time at work. Do you ever 'Daylight'?

Not for pay. Unless you count the presentation I did for a local hospital about the field in which I work, because I did some writing for that at the day job. But the day job knew about it and knew I was getting paid. I'm just crazy ethical like that.

I've had the day job get discounts at the night job in the past, when the night job was retail.

I guess that's what I'm doing now. Catering has been very, very slow with this economy thing but people have still been eating out. I'm consultaing for a relatively new restaurant that changed owners and was slowly failing. When and if we get this back on track I've been offered a position. No, I'm not Gordon Ramsay.

slick4591 Wrote:No, I'm not Gordon Ramsay.

Are you sure about that?

I had a hard time with freelance jobs while employed. I had no problem working nights on the assignments, but that didn't mean that my clients were willing to work nights in order to communicate with me. Although I didn't perform the tasks during business hours, I couldn't avoid the phone calls and emails while on the clock elsewhere.

That proved to be seriously stressful.

mjfrombuffalo Wrote:Are you sure about that?

Yep. He talks funny, but I wished I had his budget.

At least your boss knows what you're doing, Slick.

I still do my newspaper correspondent job while working as a Communications Director. Sometimes I have to run out on an assignment in the middle of the day. But my employers have liked my having the press contacts because they feel it helps them get more and better publicity themselves, so if I limit my workday assignments to two hours a week or so (and I do) they are OK with it.

When I'm out on assignments I'm always on the lookout for ways I can talk them up or promote their business.

Hmmmm...

I'm academic faculty. That's all we do...

MNM

I was thinking about it, and I doubt there is anyone with two "jobs" that doesn't do it to some degree. Of course, some people do it minimally, and some take advantage.

When I say "job" I don't necessarily mean that in the traditional sense. For example, parenting is a job. If a parent is at work and they get a call about their child, I would expect that they would take it.

magenta321 Wrote:I was thinking about it, and I doubt there is anyone with two "jobs" that doesn't do it to some degree. Of course, some people do it minimally, and some take advantage..............

I believe employers understand that there will be personal and family distractions from time to time, and some people do abuse that. The line is kinda hazy. But secretly working a second job while your employer is paying you to do something different seems clearly on the wrong side of the line.

Does taking surveys count? I do that a lot. I also take or make a call every couple of weeks about my moonlighting job.

Looks like my situation changed Saturday morning. I went by the restaurant that morning and Lissa told me that the cook had totally screwed up Friday night. Lissa had been wanting to send food out to the cheering squad before Friday's football game and had finally landed the deal. They wanted burgers and the cook sent out all of them rare when they should have been well. Needless to say I told her to do it and I would back her. So, Saturday and Sunday I started as the new 1st shift cook.

We're closed today and I'm scrambling to get things together for the rest of the week and a catering job on Saturday.

Slick, you ARE Gordon Ramsay in our book.

Thanks. I'll try to get rid of this drawl.

Would reading an email at my primary job, from my secondary job, count as daylighting?

If so, I was daylighting today when I found out I am laid off from my second job. It's nothing personal, they laid us all off... and by email... nice, huh?

Eek. That was pretty rotten!

Ack, sorry, I don't mean to hijack the thread. I'm just a sore nerve.

I think more and more people have to work two or three jobs. I have, until October 31st, 3 jobs. I don't think it's possible for someone who has to work multiple jobs to NEVER have an intrusion from other job. But, I think if employers valued their employees enough, they'd pay them enough just to have one job... you get what you pay for.

That being said, I don't think it's fair to take advantage of your employers. Sending or receiving one email or phone call once in a blue moon is a lot different than the example in the article listed above.

It's the same as phone calls from family members. Yes, we all have duties out side of work. Getting a phone call once a week is a lot different than getting phone calls hourly, regardless if it's your friends, family, another employer...