In South Korea, a significant shift is occurring in the side hustle culture. Previously, side jobs were limited to after-work or weekend jobs such as delivery, substitute driving, and part-time shifts in convenience stores and restaurants, usually by those who needed extra money.
But even the highest-paid employees at Samsung Group and Hyundai Motor Group are now taking up side hustles.
A myriad of societal changes are driving this change, including the 52-hour workweek, a work-from-home culture spurred by the Covid-19 pandemic, and the rise of the platform economy, which allows people to work remotely.
This trend is not confined to Korea. The US and Japan are also witnessing a surge in individuals seeking additional work.
The monthly average of individuals with side jobs in Korea reached a record high of 575,000 last year, according to Statistics Korea, a government body.
This figure does not include so-called “shy side hustlers” – those who don’t tell their primary 9-to-6 jobs about their side gig – suggesting that the actual number of people taking up side jobs could be significantly higher.
Career Day, a side gig brokerage platform for people with full-time jobs, is a testament to the evolving work culture in Korea.
The platform has over 20,000 members, including 4,610 from the top four conglomerates – Samsung, Hyundai, SK, and LG.
“Our members include 1,784 Samsung Group employees, 1,684 Hyundai Motor Group employees, and 1,373 SK Group employees,” said Kang Kyong-min, chief executive of Career Day.
To join Career Day, applicants must provide their resident registration number and agree to a background check by the National Health Insurance Service.
This process allows Career Day to review the applicant’s comprehensive employment history, from their first job to their current position.
Corporate employees on this platform earn extra money by consulting for startups and small firms, working on project contracts, and assisting with writing cover letters.
Earnings from phone consultations range between 200,000 to 300,000 won per hour.
To join the platform, applicants must provide their resident registration number and agree to a background check by the National Health Insurance Service.
This process allows Career Day to review the applicant’s comprehensive employment history, from their first job to their current position.
“We assure individuals who are hesitant to join [our platform] that income from side jobs is considered private data so the National Tax Service does not notify their primary employers,” said Career Day chief executive Kang Kyong-min.
Lee, 40, who works for a cosmetics company, invested his savings of 200 million won to open a franchise restaurant in Gangbuk-gu, Seoul. His company has a strict no-dual employment policy, so he opened the restaurant under his mother-in-law’s name.
“I visit the store about once a week,” he said, “I keep an eye on store operations through the CCTV on my smartphone, and I monitor real-time sales data using the point of sales app.”
“It’s hard to find anyone who informs the company that they have a side job, but everyone around me seems to have additional work,” said an HR manager at a Korean conglomerate.
As more people seek side jobs, franchise companies are aggressively promoting their ideas to draw in this burgeoning demographic.
A laundromat company promotes starting their business with the phrase, “It is a 24-hour unmanned laundromat where you can earn a paycheck without ever staying at the store.”
An online brokerage platform touts “Here is where your career becomes your second paycheck.” on its website. A restaurant franchise CEO said, “Approximately half of the individuals seeking information regarding starting a member store are those with full-time jobs,” adding, “We focus on how they can run a business while keeping their current jobs.”
Side hustles have been around for a long time. The difference now is that employees from big companies are also embracing side jobs, not only those with lower incomes.
Experts say the main drivers of this phenomenon are the 52-hour workweek, which allows people more personal time after work, and the rise of the platform economy, where people can earn income through multiple sources instead of being tied to a single employer.
“Unlike in the past, there is no clear boundary between work and rest,” said Kim Ki-chan, a professor of management at the Catholic University of Korea. “Millennials and Gen Z, who are used to a 52-hour workweek and the platform economy, are accustomed to getting ideas and earning rewards during what used to be considered downtime.”
Many see side hustles as a way to find their full-time jobs. Kee, a 36-year-old former employee at a liquor company, quit the job to open a golf studio.
In his younger days, he dreamed of becoming a professional golfer, but he opted for a job in a large corporation since his family couldn’t afford the tuition.
He found a job teaching golf in his spare time through “Soomgo,” South Korea’s largest local service marketplace.
As his skills were recognised by students, he decided to start his own business.
“I could identify whether I can do something with golf, my longtime dream, in practical terms with the side hustle while still maintaining a stable job,” he said.
40-year-old Lee, a franchise owner who now runs 30 restaurants, said, “I opened a franchise restaurant on the side to fulfil my dream of becoming an entrepreneur while working for a global conglomerate.”
The boom of taking on a second job is not limited to South Korea. Last month, Mainichi Shimbun, a Japanese daily newspaper, reported the results of a survey showing “the growing number of full-time employees who have side jobs.”
The company surveyed 800 full-time employees aged 20 to 59 and found that half, or 400, said they had a side job.
According to a survey by Keidanren, a comprehensive Japanese economic organization, about 50% of all companies in Japan allow employees to have a side hustle.
About 20% of the companies are reportedly planning to allow such practices in the future.
The same is true in the United States. According to the US Department of Labour (DOL), 8.4 million people held more than one job as of October 2024.
Of those, 5 million were working full-time while having a side hustle. Some studies show that half of American millennials (born between 1981 and 1999) have a second job.
“Younger generations, including millennials, feel it’s normal to have more than one job,” CNBC reported.
US media outlets have been publishing articles such as “The 30 Best Side Hustles to Earn Extra Money,” the list of so-called “cool side hustles” includes not only the usual suspects like delivery driving and blogging but also online surveying, online counselling, and teaching. – The Chosun Daily
