Swiggy, one of India’s largest food delivery companies, recently cast a vote of confidence in part-time jobs, the practice of employees taking second jobs. Two weeks later, one of India’s biggest IT leaders called it “cheating.”
Wipro CEO Rishad Premji’s position may be derived from experience. “Mature companies understand the constraints and understand the long-term risks of part-time jobs,” said N Shivakumar, managing director of startup consulting firm ResourceTree. “Startups rush to do things without thinking about the long-term. How will it affect their business.”
Can I work part-time?
Swiggy defines external projects as projects completed outside office hours or on weekends. They don’t conflict with the food delivery company’s own business. With proper disclosure, it can make a difference, the company said.
Harish HV, managing partner of ECube Investment, said that, in fact, it even allows employees to hone their skills as consultants while earning extra income. According to him, with working from home and flexible hours, their primary jobs will not necessarily be affected.
“Part time is probably not a bad idea as long as the employee is efficient and able to complete all the required tasks,” says Harish.
However, the corporate world is not an ideal place.
Why part-timers fail
On the one hand, second paid gigs are almost always based on shaky legal grounds, experts say .
The Indian Factory Act of 1948 prohibits dual employment. Individual states have also restricted the practice. Agencies not governed by such laws often add part-time clauses to cover letters.
Also, it is difficult to determine how many part-time jobs are part-time jobs. “One hour a day? Eight hours a day?” asked Ankur Nigam, a former partner at Ernst & Young.
People clearly don’t draw lines. “We’ve seen enough people get paid from as many as 12 companies at the same time while working from home,” Nigam said.
This also raises real concerns about hampered productivity. “After-get off work hours are there for a reason – take time off, recharge, come back the next day to do what you promised to do, and get paid.”
Like Wipro in India and abroad Companies that handle large numbers of customers and handle sensitive information have another thing to worry about.
Part-time employees may “expose secrets,” N Shivakumar told Quartz. If people can work from anywhere, “there may be no room for compliance,” he said.
For those seeking to avoid the complicated part-time clauses in their work agreements, there’s always been a mushrooming gig economy. You don’t want to commit to a company? Of course, switch to freelance.
“Let’s be objective and work for one company at a time, the good old fashioned way,” Nigam said.
