I caught my employee secretly working a second remote job. Here's why I decided to fire them — and why I think overemployment is sometimes unethical.

• Patrick Synge fired 1 of his labor for secretly moving a 2nd distant occupation while connected nan clock.
• He shared really he caught nan worker and why he decided to occurrence them. 
• He says overemployment is sometimes "unethical" and tin wounded worker productivity. 

This as-told-to effort is based connected an email speech pinch Patrick Synge, nan cofounder and main commercialized serviceman of nan business-process-outsourcing and remote-recruitment company Metrickal. The business is headquartered successful Barcelona and has 10 full time, fully distant employees, successful summation to much than 200 contractors worldwide. The pursuing has been edited for magnitude and clarity.

I'm nan cofounder and CCO of a business wherever each worker useful afloat remotely. In January, I caught 1 of them secretly moving a second full-time distant job.

Here's really it each played retired — and why I decided to occurrence them.

My business is headquartered successful Barcelona, but 1 of my labor was based successful Peru. He was hired successful 2022, and successful nan beginning, he did his occupation very well. But then, I started to person complaints from clients astir missed assignments and deadlines. He had besides go rather unresponsive. These complaints from clients started to go somewhat regular.

When this worker started refusing definite shifts he usually worked, I became suspicious. I had a emotion that he was doing thing connected nan side, but because location was nary proof, I didn't want to jump to immoderate conclusions.

So instead, I had one-on-one meetings pinch him to talk his occupation performance. When nan aforesaid issues continued, I told him that if things didn't change, I'd person to fto him go.

While he showed immoderate signs of improvement, his wide capacity didn't alteration much. This put a important load connected nan remainder of nan team, who had to screen his shifts and woody pinch missed deadlines.

How I yet caught him

In December, unrelated to this peculiar employee, my institution rolled retired nan time-tracking software called DeskTime.

My semipermanent extremity is to present a four-day workweek astatine my company, and I decided nan first measurement successful this process would beryllium knowing really my labor walk their clip and what could beryllium optimized to boost productivity.

So our full squad of full-time labor and freelance contractors started utilizing DeskTime. They each had to instal nan app connected their computers, truthful everyone was good alert that this was being implemented.

After a fewer weeks, I looked done nan search information of nan struggling worker and noticed location was different company's sanction — a US business — that regularly appeared successful nan data. It became clear to maine that this worker had worked connected immoderate different company's tasks.

I fired them nan adjacent day.

The DeskTime information showed that nan worker was utilizing package during nan workday that was unrelated to his occupation tasks. It besides included a screenshot feature that captured his machine surface — and showed him moving connected a level wherever nan different company's sanction was visible.

Based connected nan DeskTime data, I estimate that he had spent adjacent to half of his activity clip moving for this different company. It seems that he forgot astir nan search package since erstwhile it's downloaded, it doesn't require immoderate manual switching connected and off.

To beryllium honest, each nan different signs — missed deadlines, deficiency of flexibility, and unresponsiveness astatine definite times — had already made maine rather definite that he was doing thing other during moving hours. I would person astir apt fired him anyway, but nan tracked information was nan missing difficult proof.

I judge he was moving for nan different institution afloat clip because soon aft I fired him, he updated his LinkedIn floor plan to bespeak that he was moving afloat clip astatine nan different company.

Why I deliberation overemployment is sometimes unethical

I cognize immoderate group whitethorn judge me, but I mostly don't support nan inclination of overemployment. I deliberation it's sometimes unethical and conscionable wrong.

First of all, I don't deliberation it's adjacent to nan remainder of nan squad who person to screen up for personification else's debased performance. This is why keeping this worker of excavation successful nan institution wasn't an option. He wasn't adjacent and respectful to nan team, and that's thing I can't tolerate — his actions were conscionable selfish.

Secondly, I don't judge a personification tin productively do 2 jobs astatine nan aforesaid time, moreover if you use AI aliases different tools. Their attraction will beryllium scattered, truthful nan value of their activity will suffer. As an entrepreneur, I person to deliberation astir my business and clients first. I can't spend to suffer clients because personification wants to make other money.

I really don't mind group having side hustles to gain other income. But this should beryllium thing they do connected their ain clip and that doesn't impact nan value of their time job.

Are you moving aggregate distant jobs astatine nan aforesaid clip and consenting to supply specifications astir your salary and schedule? Has a coworker aliases worker of yours done so? If so, scope retired to this newsman astatine jzinkula@businessinsider.com.

Correction: June 13, 2024 — An earlier type of this communicative misstated Patrick Synge's domiciled astatine Metrickal. He's nan main commercialized officer, not nan CEO.

This communicative was primitively published successful June 2024.