SINGAPORE: In an online forum, a member sparked a discussion by asking: “Is ‘moonlighting’ very prevalent in Singapore? Is your industry or company fine with it?”
“Just curious, it seems like moonlighting is very common in SG. People just don’t announce (for obvious reasons), but it’s also very easy to find if someone digs deep enough. I guess most people not so bo liao to complain to HR unless they are vindictive. But some companies also don’t care,” the member wrote on r/askSingapore on Monday (March 25).
Furthermore, the member inquired about the moonlighting policies in other participants’ companies, wondering whether the prevalence of this practice has resulted in a lack of enforcement.
He also questioned the potential risks of moonlighting in a small country like Singapore, where employers might become aware of their employees’ secondary employment.
“Also why some companies care so much about what employees do in their free time if there is no clash of interest. Is your company super strict or they don’t care?”
“Life here is expensive. If they paid us more, it would happen less”
In the discussion thread, a few Singaporean Redditors noted that moonlighting in Singapore has become more common due to the rising cost of living, which puts pressure on people whose salaries from their full-time jobs are no longer enough to cover their day-to-day costs.
One Redditor said, “Life here is expensive. If they paid us more, it would happen less. We’ve already had to normalise dual-income families to make home ownership possible; there’s no other way for us to stretch our income.”
Another commented, “It’s an open secret that most people in my industry have side hustles. It’s just not paying us enough to have a decent quality of life in this economy.”
A third Redditor elaborated on moonlighting practices in Singapore’s public and private sectors. In the public sector, moonlighting is treated seriously, with individuals usually seeking permission or keeping their additional work discreet.
This is because it is relatively easy to discover if someone has a “registered company or business through ACRA Bizfile”, leading to less common moonlighting in the public sector.
On the other hand, in the private sector, the prevalence of moonlighting varies based on the organization’s size and the clarity of its policies.
He explained:
“The larger and more structured the company is e.g. MNCs, GLCs, larger SMEs, the more formalised their HR policies would tend to be and most would require any form of other paid work declared or approved by the organisation for conflicts of interest etc.
Enforcement varies based on the size of the organisation and how obvious this side hustle is.”
Meanwhile, another Redditor said they didn’t know anyone moonlighting in their circle, adding, “Maybe we are just fortunate. Or maybe they don’t tell me. But honestly we are too busy with our regular jobs as it is.”
Is moonlighting legal in Singapore?
According to Singapore Legal Advice, no laws prohibit employees from taking up a second job or freelance work alongside their primary employment.
However, it is still highly recommended for individuals to carefully review their contract terms before taking on any additional work. This is because there may still be clauses within the contract that specifically prohibit moonlighting activities.
Civil servants must also seek approval before engaging in additional work, which is granted on a case-by-case basis. Furthermore, foreign employees holding a Work Permit or S Pass are strictly prohibited from moonlighting.
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