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Over-employment. If you didn't know what it meant, you might assume it means having more employees than necessary.  

In truth, it’s the opposite: the modern use of the term refers to a remote or hybrid employee working for more than one employer, and using deception to hide that fact. These workers have two or more jobs and are likely to receive full-time pay and benefits from both.  

Over-employed workers often work from separate computers, streamlining tasks to reduce hours spent on each job and then leveraging those gains to work less than a traditional 40-hour week. They have more time, and make more money, all while receiving the equivalent income of two or more full-time salaries. 

Sounds like a dream, right? Well, that depends on who you ask. For the over-employed, it’s a win (at least at first glance). Businesses, on the other hand, often find themselves on the losing end of this trend. 

An over-employed employee is a disengaged employee, and a disengaged employee is unlikely to be loyal. They’re always going to be on the lookout for bigger and better opportunities. And they may even be using shady or downright unethical practices to get their work done faster.  

Some employees boast of working as little as only single-digit hours a week at a full-time position while receiving the full payout, despite the fact they didn't have the required hours to receive full-time pay. So long as the work is done and they appear to be online, they often slip under the radar. 

There are even online communities that offer tips to over-employed individuals, including strategies to hide their situation from employers and make the most money with the least effort. 

But how can your business prevent employees from holding multiple remote positions?  

According to Tierney Stauffer LLP, with some exceptions, dual employment is allowed in Canada. There is currently no law that outright prevents an employee from working with two different employers.  

However, there are instances where dual employment may not be appropriate, and there are measures you can take to prevent it. 

How Is Over-Employment Undermining Your Workforce? 

While each situation may differ, most online discussions about over-employment focus on maximizing profit while minimizing effort. 

Many of these employees, while skilled, have found ways to cut corners and get the equivalent of full-time work completed in the fewest hours required, often utilizing automated tools like generative AI to get things done with maximum efficiency.  

This leads them to being completely checked out of the role, seeing it only as a means of maximizing their own profits.  

Quality assurance is greatly reduced when the people you employ have other jobs on their minds, and perhaps most importantly, only see their employer as a paycheck. 

But it’s not only the employer who suffers – in the long run, over-employment hurts employees as well. 

It’s no secret that most people who work multiple jobs do it to increase their income. And, of course, employees need to be adequately paid. But having zero loyalty to a company is detrimental to everyone. It fosters a negative work environment and limits an employee’s own professional growth. 

When one person is spread too thin, their coworkers are left picking up the slack. This creates resentment and lowers morale across the board. 

It also threatens the future of remote work itself. Remote work has revolutionized many businesses (just ask Harvard Business School), but due to issues such as over-employment, some employers are forcing employees back into the office. This takes away both the cost savings and flexibility that remote work provides, harming employees and businesses alike. 

By allowing remote workers to minimize their work efforts for the maximum amount of profit, it sends the wrong message to other employees, creating a work culture where some people can reap the rewards without putting in the effort. 

If your employees can make more money with minimum effort, they have no reason to grow with your business or care about its culture.  

People need to make money. But the solution isn’t to swindle multiple business owners into paying a full-time salary for part-time effort. 

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Tired of losing top talent to over-employment? Stop settling for divided attention and invest in dedicated employees. Contact itec group today and discover how Canada's leading recruiting agency can help you build a loyal, high-performing team. 

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Why Do People Choose to Be Over-Employed? 

Many over-employed people, as we mentioned, don’t have to work 40 hours a week to receive full-time pay. Without commutes and office distractions, they work faster. Many also use software to help automate their positions (such as emails and other daily tasks). 

But instead of using this extra time to excel in their current role, many are choosing to use these time-saving efforts to take on second jobs. This divides their attention and prevents them from giving their best to your business. 

With over-employment, employees are increasing their pay without many of the sacrifices, such as their free time. They see it as a means of saving more for retirement while affording more of what life has to offer – many feel justified due to the increased cost of living. Plus, there’s less concern about losing their job, because they have another one in their back pocket. 

It sounds like an easy fix to inflation, job insecurity and general concerns for affordability. But as we've seen, it comes at a great cost to employers, damages workplace culture, and ultimately hurts the long-term career growth of over-employed workers themselves. 

How To Prevent Over-Employment 

If a contract stipulates that employment must be exclusive or outlines specific hours for job duties, working for a second employer could constitute a breach of contract and may be grounds for termination.  

By making it clear that your business does not tolerate over-employment, those looking to use your business will likely steer clear.  

However, there are additional measures you can take to avoid over-employment. 

1. Offer Competitive Pay and Create a Positive Work Culture

If you offer a competitive wage for the position you’re hiring for and foster a positive work environment, employees are less likely to feel compelled to have another job. The predominant purpose of over-employment is to increase income, so if the income is competitive enough that the additional effort of having another job is more hassle than it's worth, you reduce the risk of over-employment. 

Of course, offering a reasonable wage isn’t always enough, which is why having a positive work culture can fill the gaps. Having a positive and supportive work culture inspires employee loyalty, making them eager and excited to grow with your business and see it thrive. If you treat an employee like they’re just a number, they’re less likely to feel obligated to you or your business. 

While having an environment and culture that encourages employees to be fearful or cutthroat can seem beneficial in the early stages, it’s likely to have temporary effects. Research has shown that increased stress like this can cause employee disengagement. Engagement in work is characterized by feeling valued, secure, supported, and respected – which means employees are likely to be more inspired.  

Simply put, having disengaged employees is going to cost you money.

Studies by the Queens School of Business and the Gallup Organization found that disengaged workers had 37% higher absenteeism, 49% more accidents, and 60% more errors and defects.  

Organizations with low employee engagement scores experienced 18% lower productivity, 16% lower profitability, 37% lower job growth, and a 65% decline in share price over time. Conversely, businesses with highly engaged employees saw a 100% increase in job applications – and those are not small numbers.  

2. Adopt New Policies to Address Over-Employment 

As mentioned, stipulating clauses that prevent over-employment can be a great deterrent for over-employment.  

Employers need to be clear when it comes to their views and positions on over-employment and ensure that their employees understand company policies on maintaining more than one job – especially if it means working with a competitor. 

However, to make sure you’re on the right side of the law, it’s good to inquire with a lawyer before incorporating an over-employment clause into your contracts. They can take you through the contract terms, employment law, legal principles, implications, and complexities that come with developing an employment contract.  

3. Provide Clear Contracts 

Provide all employees with written contracts that define working hours, exclusivity to your business, your views and policies on over-employment, the monitoring rights of the business, and other workplace policies. This lets potential employees know that you’re aware of over-employment issues and could deter possible offenders from applying. It could also encourage greater transparency should current employees hold multiple positions.  

4. Regularly Monitor and Touch Base with Employees 

It’s easy to allow your employees to simply work independently – it’s most employers’ dream to trust their team to just get the job done without having to be watched like a hawk.  

However, in remote scenarios, employers need to determine how they plan to monitor and manage their employees to ensure they have reasonable means of meeting expectations and obligations.   

This can mean using several tools to track project completion, platforms to monitor employee activity, and scheduling systems to arrange periodic check-ins to ensure your employees are available and online. Some companies even adopt a company-wide policy of tracking the time of remote and hybrid workers, including tracking breaks, days off and vacation time. 

If employees know you’re on top of their time and success, the less likely they are to slack or focus their efforts elsewhere.  

5. Hire The Right Fit for the Job 

When hiring remote or hybrid workers, it can feel like you're constantly sifting through hundreds of applications, trying to find the right fit. In this day and age, people can lie about their experience and make it increasingly difficult to confirm their resume's legitimacy. You need to protect your time, your business, and your resources. That's why tec group is here to help.  

Our goal is to help you build and manage an agile workforce capable of filling specialized talent gaps within your organization.  

At itec group, we understand the critical importance of having the right people in place to drive the innovation and growth of your business.  

Our retention-focused hiring approach targets candidates with cross-functional skills who will not only excel in their current position but also learn, develop, and evolve to meet your business needs in the future. We also put great employees in contact with the best job opportunities in Canada.   

Don't allow over-employment to undermine your workforce. Contact us today and partner with us to find you the best people for your business.