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White-collar employees in industries such as banking, insurance and technology talk in this article about how they're secretly holding down two full-time remote jobs, with many admitting they still don't work more than 40 hours each week. Some of the workers got the idea from a website called Overemployed, and they discuss the pros and cons of leading double work lives -- a practice that employment lawyers say isn't actually illegal but could certainly be grounds for termination.
Analysis of over 3.8 million LinkedIn job postings for entry-level positions since December 2017 reveals 35% have stipulated candidates must have at least three years' experience in a relevant role, with the software and IT industry the biggest culprit. The trend is not just unfair to newcomers seeking a way in to particular industries, it could prevent employers from attracting the right candidates, George Anders writes.
More than 1,000 Nabisco employees are striking in Oregon, Colorado, Virginia and Illinois over a dispute with parent company Mondelez International, which is proposing changes including turning 8-hour shifts to 12 hours without overtime. New employees would also have to cover additional health insurance costs, according to the proposed changes.
If you're stressed out by the pandemic and your workload, make sure you've told someone at work about the situation while also looking at what tasks matter most and which might be automated. "Together, you can determine which tasks can be reassigned, put off, performed monthly instead of weekly, or done without entirely," writes Rashan Dixon of Microsoft.
Toggling multiple work devices. Manipulating calendars to dodge meetings. Logging into two meetings at once. Having a list of excuses at the ready in case you run into a sticky situation. This sounds like more work!
But what really killed me was the intentional mediocrity. I was stunned by what the Atlanta woman, who was working for a telecommunications company and an insurance company, said about her setup. "Am I trying to be, like, a five-star employee?" she says. "Not really. I'm just trying to do the job I need to not get fired."
I don't want my professional legacy to be that "She did enough not to get fired." I do want to be a five-star employee that my peers and managers know they can count on.
What do you think about this practice? Do you think this type of secret double-work will affect employers' willingness to let their teams work remotely? Let me know! And if you enjoy this brief, tell others so they can benefit also.
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