Second Jobs and Side Hustles: A Growing Workforce Trend
As we enter 2026, interest in “side hustles” and second jobs is rising sharply. While supplementary work is not a new phenomenon, recent data suggests it is becoming a more mainstream response to financial pressure. For employers, the practical issues in relation to side hustles are less about why employees are doing additional work, and more about what this trend means for performance management, conflicts of interest and employee wellbeing.
Key Points
- Interest in side hustles has increased sharply, with search data showing growing financial pressure among UK workers heading into 2026.
- ONS data confirms that around 1.3 million people in the UK already have a second job or side hustle, representing nearly 4% of the workforce.
- Side hustles raise practical employment law issues, including fatigue, performance management, and conflicts of interest.
- Secondary work is now a mainstream workforce issue rather than a niche trend.
- Employers should manage side hustles through clear contracts, policies and consistent management, rather than blanket bans.
Search Trends Point To Growing Financial Pressure
A new survey compiled by YuLife, in which they analysed search behaviour, has found that there was a substantial increase in searches for “side hustle” and “second job” towards the end of 2025. Their analysis indicates that in December 2025 alone, there were approximately 56,000 searches for those terms, equating to someone in Britain looking up a side hustle or second job roughly every 48 seconds. They also report that there was a 33% rise in “side hustle” searches between August and December 2025.
Search trends are not the same as labour market outcomes, but they are often a useful early indicator of behavioural shifts. In this case, they align with a broader picture of households seeking ways to bridge the gap between incomes and outgoings.
Official Statistics Show Second Jobs Are Already Significant
ONS labour market data highlights that having side hustles or a second job is no longer unusual. Indeed, in its December 2025 labour market bulletin, the ONS reported that around 1.3 million people in the UK have side hustles / second jobs. This equates to about 3.8% of everyone in work.
Hence, side hustles / second jobs are now part of mainstream working life. They affect a significant number of employees, not just a small minority. For employers, this means secondary work is something that needs to be managed in practice, rather than viewed as a passing trend or lifestyle choice.
The Key Employer Risks: Performance And Conflicts
From a management perspective, the primary risks in relation to side hustles / second jobs are predictable:
- Fatigue and performance: Employees working evenings or weekends on top of a full-time role can experience reduced rest, lower concentration and higher burnout risk. This can show up as absence, errors, reduced responsiveness or a decline in performance over time.
- Conflicts of interest and confidentiality: A second job can create conflicts (working for a competitor, soliciting clients, or using know-how gained through the primary role) and raises data/confidentiality concerns, particularly where employees use employer equipment or work on side projects during working hours.
What Employers Should Do Now
A sensible approach is to manage the issue through clarity rather than blanket prohibition. This typically means:
- ensuring contracts and policies address conflicts, confidentiality, use of resources and disclosure of secondary work where relevant;
- reminding managers to address performance issues promptly and consistently (without assumptions about the cause); and
- applying policies consistently to avoid grievance, discrimination or employee relations problems.
Side hustles and second jobs are likely to remain a feature of the UK labour market. Employers that treat this as a workforce management issue, rather than a disciplinary issue, will generally be better placed to manage risk, retain staff and maintain productivity.
Blue Monday: Myth vs. Reality
Third Monday In January
Blue Monday is often described in the media as the “most depressing day of the year”, usually falling on the third Monday in January (in 2026, this was the 19th January) and based on factors like weather, post-holiday debt, time since Christmas and low motivation. Its origins are set out in the attached, and it has become a recurring feature of January news coverage.
No Scientific Basis
Blue Monday however has no scientific basis as a uniquely depressive day. Mental health professionals emphasise that mood and wellbeing vary between individuals and are influenced by a wide range of personal and environmental factors rather than a calendar date. The Royal College of Psychiatrists has explicitly warned against trivialising mental health by promoting the Blue Monday narrative, noting that people living with depression and anxiety cope with those challenges every day, not just on one designated Monday.
Year Round Support
Employers can support employee wellbeing year round by promoting open conversations about mental health, ensuring access to appropriate support, training managers to spot issues early, and embedding wellbeing into everyday workplace practices rather than one-off initiatives.
Employers: What This Means
- Review employment contracts and policies to ensure they address side hustles, conflicts of interest, confidentiality and use of company resources.
- Be alert to performance issues linked to fatigue, without assuming the cause or taking a punitive approach.
- Apply policies consistently to avoid grievances, discrimination risks or employee relations issues.
- Treat side hustles as a workforce management issue rather than a disciplinary problem.
