- Some Americans have quietly taken on multiple remote jobs and more than doubled their salaries.
- But orders to return to the office and a hiring slowdown have made it difficult to maintain an “overemployed” state.
- Five job jugglers share how they've adapted, or plan to adapt, to life on one income.
For the past three years, Charles has quietly juggled full-time remote work with contract work, making between $100,000 and $300,000 a year, but he knows this “overemployment” won't last forever.
Charles told Business Insider in an email that the extra income has allowed him to renovate his home, buy a rental property, invest in his personal business, and buy a new car. But in recent months, return-to-office orders and a hiring slowdown have reduced the number of fully remote jobs in his industry. — He works as a consumer products specialist in a tri-state area, so he's hanging on to his two remaining remote jobs and dreading a future where he'll have to commute.
The extra income has given Charles more savings, but he has grown accustomed to receiving multiple paychecks, something that they plan to become even more valuable once he has a wife and children. This is something we plan to do over the next year. Charles said that with his “overemployment” potentially coming to an end soon, he has begun thinking about other ways to supplement his income.
Some of his top ideas include selling online classes, creating a dropshipping store, starting a podcast channel, self-publishing a book on Amazon, selling digital goods on Etsy, creating a TikTok channel, and selling stock photos.
“If it all didn't work out, I would try to find other ways to make more money,” said Charles, whose identity is known to BI but who asked that his name be used pseudonymously for fear of professional repercussions. “I've always had a mindset of, how can I make a lot of money fast?”
Shortcuts to financial stability are few. But in recent years, some Americans have been using a kind of cheat code. Business Insider spoke to more than 20 overemployed people who secretly juggled multiple remote jobs to make up to $1 million a year. They've used the extra income to pay off student loans, save for retirement, and buy expensive vacations and diet pills. But job juggling can be mentally taxing, and the ethics of doing it in secret are up for debate. But most currently and formerly overemployed people told BI that the financial benefits are well worth it.
But there's a problem for current and future multi-job holders: The golden age of overemployment may be coming to an end.
Remote jobs are harder to come by: About half of the U.S. workforce was done remotely during the pandemic, and there were plenty of fully remote jobs available, which led to a rise in overemployment. But in recent years, return-to-office orders have led to a decline in such jobs.
Plus, competition for remote jobs is heating up: The percentage of fully remote job postings on LinkedIn has fallen from 20% in April 2022 to about 8% as of May, according to LinkedIn data provided to BI. Despite the decline, LinkedIn said 46% of applications made on its platform in December were for fully remote roles.
At the same time, some companies in the IT and technology industries are laying off employees and slowing hiring. These industries are offering a combination of remote work and flexible working arrangements that allow many overemployed workers to work multiple jobs. Additionally, some companies are deploying employee monitoring software to make it harder for people to evade detection.
Even if remote work were plentiful, some overemployed workers told BI that juggling multiple jobs would inevitably lead to burnout, as there would always be a time limit.
To be sure, remote work hasn't gone away. In June, about 24% of full-time U.S. workers age 16 and older worked from home at least part of the time, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics' most recent population survey. Eleven percent worked remotely all of their shifts. By June 2023, 20% of full-time workers worked remotely some of the time, and 10% worked remotely entirely.
But even if remote work continues, it's likely that much of it will be in a hybrid arrangement, and while many Americans might be happy going into the office just a few days a week, the hybrid model is generally untenable for overemployed workers.
Five current and former busy people described how they've responded to overemployment when it comes to an end, or how they plan to respond if it does. Their earnings were verified by Business Insider, and they were identified but asked not to be named for fear of professional repercussions.
Explore other sources of income and spend what you have wisely
Adam, a security risk professional in his 40s who lives in Arizona, is on track to make roughly $200,000 this year from secretly working two full-time remote jobs.
He said that the extra work he began doing in 2022 has allowed him to reduce his student loan balance by more than $50,000. The extra income has also allowed him to max out his 401(k) plan, improve his credit score, build up an emergency savings fund and financially support friends.
Adam hopes to keep working both jobs for at least the next few years, but he's already thinking about ways to make up for the loss of income.
He's starting a podcast that he hopes to monetize one day, and he also wants to become a financial coach and look for consulting work related to his current job.
In addition to exploring other sources of income, Adam said he's trying to take advantage of his excess income while he still can.
“Paying off my student loans reduces my monthly expenses by 50 percent, so I'm paying them off aggressively,” he said.
Spending cuts may be necessary
Thomas, a tech worker in his 30s from Georgia, made more than $250,000 last year by secretly working two full-time remote jobs.
He said the extra income has increased his net worth to more than $500,000, enabled him to buy two cars and travel more.
Thomas wants to remain overemployed for as long as he can – even take on a third job if it suits him – but he must avoid being ordered back to the office.
A few years ago, one of his employers asked him to return to the office, but Thomas resisted, arguing that he was a full-time contractor, not an employee, and should be able to continue working remotely.
“Fortunately, it seems to be going well so far,” he said.
But Thomas doesn't think the overemployment will last forever. He will look for other ways to earn extra income. It can also reduce expenses.
For example, Thomas said he recently spent about $3,000 on a Burberry jacket, hat and sandals, and he knows that without multiple streams of income, such purchases may no longer be feasible.
Charles said if he can't find a way to increase income with any of his various ideas, he will also start reviewing his spending.
“We live in an age of subscriptions where everything is a subscription,” he said. “I would probably start there and work my way down to fewer subscriptions.”
Saving while overemployed can ease the transition
Joseph, a network engineer in his late 40s who lives in Texas, made $344,000 in 2022 by quietly working three full-time remote jobs.
The increased income has allowed him to pay off his mortgage and save for his children's college education, but he told BI that perhaps the greatest benefit of having multiple jobs is the increased job stability it gives him.
That's because Joseph was laid off from two jobs last year. He wasn't completely without income because he was overemployed.
In some ways, Joseph says he's glad he no longer has to work two jobs because it's a lot less stressful. Though his income has decreased (his remaining job pays more than six figures), Joseph says the money he made while overemployed has given him financial security. The money has also helped him pay off his mortgage and car loans from the past few years, putting him in a stable financial position.
“My salary is enough to cover my daily expenses,” Joseph said. “I worked two, then three jobs, and saved everything I earned from those two salaries.”
Luke, too, has adapted well to life without multiple paychecks. An e-commerce professional in his late 30s, he made about $225,000 in 2022 by sneaking in two full-time remote jobs. He used his extra income to buy a truck, start an Airbnb, and build up his savings.
But Luke left one of his jobs earlier this year after one of his employers required him to return to the office, making it nearly impossible to juggle his work, he says.
Luke said that from a financial standpoint, he's well prepared for life without working a double job, and his best advice to those who are still overemployed is to not become so dependent on the extra income.
“From the beginning, I made sure that my side hustle income wasn't factored into our household finances,” he says, “so even though I was making over $225,000, we were still living as if I was only making a base salary of $150,000 from my day job.”
Are you secretly working multiple remote jobs at the same time and willing to discuss the details regarding pay and schedule? If so, please contact this reporter. jzinkula@insider.com.
