Side Hustle: Only 42% of Workers Are Loyal to Primary Job

HR Daily Advisor Editorial Staff
Thursday - August 24, 2017

Got a side-gig? You’re not alone. According to new CareerBuilder research, nearly a third of workers (32%) do—this compares to 29% last year. And more women than men have side hustles—35% of women vs. 28% of men.

While having a side-gig is popular across demographics, it’s more popular for some. Broken down by age, those under 35 are more likely to have a side hustle (41%) versus those over 35 (27%). By race and ethnicity, African American workers (46%) and Hispanic workers (40%) are more likely than Caucasian (29%) and Asian (26%) workers to have a side hustle.

The national study was conducted online by Harris Poll on behalf of CareerBuilder from May 24 to June 16, 2017 among a representative sample of 3,696 full-time workers across industries in the U.S., including 3,462 in the private sector.

“While we continue to be at what is considered full employment, the quality and pay of jobs isn’t always what workers want, causing them to seek out new ways to supplement their full-time income,” said Rosemary Haefner, Chief Human Resources Officer at CareerBuilder—in a press release. “We’re no longer in a world where there’s just one employee-employer relationship. It’s easier than ever to download an app that allows you to drive around passengers, pick up babysitting gigs or sell your unwanted furniture, and employees are willing to take on these extra responsibilities for the extra cash.”

How Much Money is Enough Money?

Workers of all income levels are taking on extra work. One in four workers making more than $75k (25%) and 19% of those making more than $100k currently have a gig outside of their full-time job. This is compared to 35% of workers making below $50k and 36% earning below $35k.
Workers across the country are working side gigs, with the South leading the way at 33%. This compares to 32% of workers in the West, and 31% in both the Midwest and Northeast. When it comes to cities where workers have side gigs, Dallas comes out on top (40%), followed by:

• Boston: 39%
• Houston: 39%
• New York: 38%
• Philadelphia: 37%
• Miami: 36%

Workers report having side gigs in the following industries:

• Leisure and hospitality (42%)
• Transportation (36%)
• Healthcare (34%)
• Retail: 32%
• Manufacturing: 31%
• Sales: 30%
• Financial services: 27%
• IT: 25%

What Are Workers Doing?

Below are some of the types of side hustles workers are doing in addition to their regular work hours:

• Survey taker
• Babysitter
• Chef/baker
• Dog walker
• Blogger
• House sitter
• DJ
• Bartender

Some workers cited more unique side gigs:

• Barrel racer
• Face painter
• Gourd artist
• Soap maker
• Rapper

Where Does an Employee’s Loyalty Lie?

Some workers may be taking on side hustles to help overcome the day-to-day drag of their day jobs. More than eight in 10 workers (82%) say they are not in their dream jobs, and 42% say they don’t think they ever will be. A third of workers who are not in their dream job (33%) have a side hustle.

But those with side hustles aren’t looking to leave their traditional jobs. Sixty-seven percent of workers with a side hustle do not want to turn their side gig into their day job and 71% of all workers don’t plan to own their own business in the future. When asked if they’re more passionate about their day job or side hustle, more said their day job (42%) than their side hustle (32%) or neither (25%).