2nd job while furloughed

roxy48

I saw a lot back in April about getting seasonal work while furloughed and it sounded easy.  I was thinking it would allow any furloughed worker to take part-time work eg fruit-picking or gig-economy type jobs, like delivery driver, part-time gardening etc.

I'm advising someone who is just having their pay cut from 100% to 80% and I said "why not take a 2nd job, maybe part-time?" as I had seen that this was possible.  But now I google this and the Citizens Advice or even gov.uk advice seems to say you can only do this "where your existing contract of employment allows this".

I mean is this real?  How many CofE's would specifically put something in saying you could work elsewhere in the event of a pandemic???????? 

Seriously are you allowed to take on a 2nd job while furloughed??

Thanks Roxy48

bradders1983

A lot of contracts will forbid it for competition reasons, not because of a global pandemic.

Jeremy535897

roxy48 said:

I saw a lot back in April about getting seasonal work while furloughed and it sounded easy.  I was thinking it would allow any furloughed worker to take part-time work eg fruit-picking or gig-economy type jobs, like delivery driver, part-time gardening etc.

I'm advising someone who is just having their pay cut from 100% to 80% and I said "why not take a 2nd job, maybe part-time?" as I had seen that this was possible.  But now I google this and the Citizens Advice or even gov.uk advice seems to say you can only do this "where your existing contract of employment allows this".

I mean is this real?  How many CofE's would specifically put something in saying you could work elsewhere in the event of a pandemic???????? 

Seriously are you allowed to take on a 2nd job while furloughed??

Thanks Roxy48

I think you misunderstand. The phrase "where your existing contract of employment allows this" does not mean "where your contract of employment allows you to have another job if there is a pandemic". It means "where your contract of employment allows you to do another job while still being employed by your current employer". As bradders says, a lot of contracts of employment require you to work exclusively for your employer and no-one else, possibly for competition reasons.

[Deleted User]

You could if you had set hours and knew you finished on time at job 1 (pandemic aside) and your governor really didn't mind you working elsewhere. (Although I've never come across this to be honest)
There was that job centre programme which showed the advisor after a day's work down JCP then going to stack shelves in a s@vers shop!! and Feb 2020 even for something shot last summer wasn't awfully long ago.
As I said to a 'zero hours' employer who expressed shock late last summer that I might still be looking around for better paid/more secure work and not to work every weekend in sight as much it it proved rather handy at times for the mid-week time off... as I said to myself then it was easy I worked shift work and that allowed me legitimately to go off for other interviews as is anyone's right and I didn't have to lie where I was going when it was all arranged around work hours.
My current job you are meant to work longer hours in the summer and shorter in the winter but I'm not really sure I see it happening : /

suki1964

Having a 2nd job whilst contracted in one used to be called " Moonlighting"

Depending on where you worked was how it was looked upon

So I used to work for the NHS and moonlighted in a pub at weekends. No conflict, completely different types of work, didn't encroach on the hours I was contracted to them, so a blind eye was turned

Now if I was a bus driver and moonlighted as an Uber Driver, that really wouldn't be allowed

A lot of companies have clauses in their contracts against moonlighting. Those would exist pre pandemic 

roxy48

bradders1983 said:

A lot of contracts will forbid it for competition reasons, not because of a global pandemic.

OK, but then again, a lot of people do have 2nd jobs, where the 2nd job is in an unrelated field.  I haven't seen any contract of employment that specifically says you can't work elsewhere.  But I haven't seen many.  Thanks Roxy48

roxy48

Jeremy535897 said:

roxy48 said:

I saw a lot back in April about getting seasonal work while furloughed and it sounded easy.  I was thinking it would allow any furloughed worker to take part-time work eg fruit-picking or gig-economy type jobs, like delivery driver, part-time gardening etc.

I'm advising someone who is just having their pay cut from 100% to 80% and I said "why not take a 2nd job, maybe part-time?" as I had seen that this was possible.  But now I google this and the Citizens Advice or even gov.uk advice seems to say you can only do this "where your existing contract of employment allows this".

I mean is this real?  How many CofE's would specifically put something in saying you could work elsewhere in the event of a pandemic???????? 

Seriously are you allowed to take on a 2nd job while furloughed??

Thanks Roxy48

I think you misunderstand. The phrase "where your existing contract of employment allows this" does not mean "where your contract of employment allows you to have another job if there is a pandemic". It means "where your contract of employment allows you to do another job while still being employed by your current employer". As bradders says, a lot of contracts of employment require you to work exclusively for your employer and no-one else, possibly for competition reasons.

Is that true though?  I've not seen many contracts of employment, so I don't know.  But I thought you could have one job during the day and work in a pub at night, or take a cleaning job.  I Didn't realise there were stipulations in the 'c of e' preventing this.  Thanks Roxy48

roxy48

Deleted User said:

You could if you had set hours and knew you finished on time at job 1 (pandemic aside) and your governor really didn't mind you working elsewhere. (Although I've never come across this to be honest)
There was that job centre programme which showed the advisor after a day's work down JCP then going to stack shelves in a s@vers shop!! and Feb 2020 even for something shot last summer wasn't awfully long ago.
As I said to a 'zero hours' employer who expressed shock late last summer that I might still be looking around for better paid/more secure work and not to work every weekend in sight as much it it proved rather handy at times for the mid-week time off... as I said to myself then it was easy I worked shift work and that allowed me legitimately to go off for other interviews as is anyone's right and I didn't have to lie where I was going when it was all arranged around work hours.
My current job you are meant to work longer hours in the summer and shorter in the winter but I'm not really sure I see it happening : /

Yes, I thought you could work ina pub or something outside hours.  But does the contract of employment say you have to work 9-5 which might mean you cannot work anywhere else during those hours?  During Covid you might want to get a 2nd job to top up your 80% wages.

roxy48

suki1964 said:

Having a 2nd job whilst contracted in one used to be called " Moonlighting"

Depending on where you worked was how it was looked upon

So I used to work for the NHS and moonlighted in a pub at weekends. No conflict, completely different types of work, didn't encroach on the hours I was contracted to them, so a blind eye was turned

Now if I was a bus driver and moonlighted as an Uber Driver, that really wouldn't be allowed

A lot of companies have clauses in their contracts against moonlighting. Those would exist pre pandemic 

Thanks;  I hadn't realised that.  I guess I am of the era where the contract of employment was a one page letter with expected hours,  holidays and notice period!!  Once you feel the need to make it a multi-page document you have to fill it with something.  And HR have to justify themselves!!

[Deleted User]

roxy48 said:

bradders1983 said:

A lot of contracts will forbid it for competition reasons, not because of a global pandemic.

OK, but then again, a lot of people do have 2nd jobs, where the 2nd job is in an unrelated field.  I haven't seen any contract of employment that specifically says you can't work elsewhere.  But I haven't seen many.  Thanks Roxy48

It is a fairly standard clause once you progress career wise or if you work for a larger employer and I think pretty much across the board now. I've had it in most of my contracts since my early twenties. What it generally says is without prior written approval. In my early twenties I had an ok job but I also wanted to pay back debts, so I looked to get a bar job, asked my work and they had no problem as it was outside of work ours and they said as long as the later didn't impact my work, it didn't so they were happy for it to continue as long as I wanted it do. However if I had said I wanted to spend the evening working for a supplier, competitor or freelancing in the same sector the answer would have been no. 

My guess would be that nearly everyone with a formal employment contract and handbook has these clauses now, they are the norm rather than the exception. 

roxy48

MadMattUK said:

roxy48 said:

bradders1983 said:

A lot of contracts will forbid it for competition reasons, not because of a global pandemic.

OK, but then again, a lot of people do have 2nd jobs, where the 2nd job is in an unrelated field.  I haven't seen any contract of employment that specifically says you can't work elsewhere.  But I haven't seen many.  Thanks Roxy48

It is a fairly standard clause once you progress career wise or if you work for a larger employer and I think pretty much across the board now. I've had it in most of my contracts since my early twenties. What it generally says is without prior written approval. In my early twenties I had an ok job but I also wanted to pay back debts, so I looked to get a bar job, asked my work and they had no problem as it was outside of work ours and they said as long as the later didn't impact my work, it didn't so they were happy for it to continue as long as I wanted it do. However if I had said I wanted to spend the evening working for a supplier, competitor or freelancing in the same sector the answer would have been no. 

My guess would be that nearly everyone with a formal employment contract and handbook has these clauses now, they are the norm rather than the exception. 

Many thanks for that.  That has made it a lot clearer.  
It does though makes it quite difficult in this virus situation to go out and get another job, which wasn't what I thought when I saw the headlines about furloughed staff joining fruitpickers or Tesco. 
It might even make it worse as before you actually get the job you have to ask. 
Thanks anyway everyone.  I've learnt something.      Roxy48