I work at an engineering firm and was hired to do drone shots for their projects for social media. They made it clear it has to be done outside work hours or on weekends. The problem is I already run a drone business on weekends for real estate shoots. Should I tell them about this? I have someone to handle the editing part to save me time.
Does your company ask you to report extra income? If they don’t, I wouldn’t worry about it. What you do on your own time is up to you, as long as you don’t do it during work hours. You’ve got a contract saying it’s off-hours work, so it’s really none of their business.
Morgan said:
Does your company ask you to report extra income? If they don’t, I wouldn’t worry about it. What you do on your own time is up to you, as long as you don’t do it during work hours. You’ve got a contract saying it’s off-hours work, so it’s really none of their business.
You should be careful about conflicts of interest though.
Morgan said:
Does your company ask you to report extra income? If they don’t, I wouldn’t worry about it. What you do on your own time is up to you, as long as you don’t do it during work hours. You’ve got a contract saying it’s off-hours work, so it’s really none of their business.
You should be careful about conflicts of interest though.
As long as you don’t mix your side hustle with your main job, it’s fine. I work as an engineer, and my side drone business doesn’t interfere at all. Just make sure not to handle side work during your main job hours.
Morgan said:
Does your company ask you to report extra income? If they don’t, I wouldn’t worry about it. What you do on your own time is up to you, as long as you don’t do it during work hours. You’ve got a contract saying it’s off-hours work, so it’s really none of their business.
You should be careful about conflicts of interest though.
I work in video production, and my boss made it clear I can’t do side gigs that could take away potential clients from us. So, if you think your side gig might conflict with your main job’s clients, be careful. It could be a problem if they find out.
Morgan said:
Does your company ask you to report extra income? If they don’t, I wouldn’t worry about it. What you do on your own time is up to you, as long as you don’t do it during work hours. You’ve got a contract saying it’s off-hours work, so it’s really none of their business.
I do want to get paid through my business account, which is why I’m unsure if I should tell them. I could just keep using my personal account for their payments, but I’m worried they might see it as a conflict even though I’m just shooting their finished buildings.
Morgan said:
Does your company ask you to report extra income? If they don’t, I wouldn’t worry about it. What you do on your own time is up to you, as long as you don’t do it during work hours. You’ve got a contract saying it’s off-hours work, so it’s really none of their business.
I do want to get paid through my business account, which is why I’m unsure if I should tell them. I could just keep using my personal account for their payments, but I’m worried they might see it as a conflict even though I’m just shooting their finished buildings.
Keep your personal and business accounts separate. If they’re paying you for work, it’s just part of your regular job, not part of your side hustle. But if they need you to work on a weekend and you’ve already booked a client, that’s where the problem could arise. In that case, you’d need to tell them now before it becomes an issue.
Isan said:
Morgan said:
Does your company ask you to report extra income? If they don’t, I wouldn’t worry about it. What you do on your own time is up to you, as long as you don’t do it during work hours. You’ve got a contract saying it’s off-hours work, so it’s really none of their business.
I do want to get paid through my business account, which is why I’m unsure if I should tell them. I could just keep using my personal account for their payments, but I’m worried they might see it as a conflict even though I’m just shooting their finished buildings.
Keep your personal and business accounts separate. If they’re paying you for work, it’s just part of your regular job, not part of your side hustle. But if they need you to work on a weekend and you’ve already booked a client, that’s where the problem could arise. In that case, you’d need to tell them now before it becomes an issue.
That’s a good point. I try to schedule all side work after hours or on weekends. They might worry if I tell them about the LLC, thinking I’ll leave if the business takes off. They gave me this opportunity since I work in-house and have a background in construction monitoring, so it’s a steady gig for me. What would you do in my situation?
What you do in your free time is not their business.
Yan said:
What you do in your free time is not their business.
It depends on whether the drone work is part of your job description or if they provided the drone. Imagine someone being given work software and using it for personal jobs on the side—that could get tricky.
Ask yourself a few things:
- Does your contract require you to disclose outside work?
- Did they pay for the drone?
- Could your side gig create a conflict for your job?
- Is your side gig a competitor to your main job?
If you answered ‘no’ to all, you’re probably fine. But if you said ‘yes’ to any, it’s worth talking to your manager.
Nuri said:
Ask yourself a few things:
- Does your contract require you to disclose outside work?
- Did they pay for the drone?
- Could your side gig create a conflict for your job?
- Is your side gig a competitor to your main job?
If you answered ‘no’ to all, you’re probably fine. But if you said ‘yes’ to any, it’s worth talking to your manager.
Thanks, that’s helpful!
Nuri said:
Ask yourself a few things:
- Does your contract require you to disclose outside work?
- Did they pay for the drone?
- Could your side gig create a conflict for your job?
- Is your side gig a competitor to your main job?
If you answered ‘no’ to all, you’re probably fine. But if you said ‘yes’ to any, it’s worth talking to your manager.
Thanks, that’s helpful!
Just keep in mind, your employer might consider almost anything a conflict if it’s even remotely related to their business.
Nuri said:
Ask yourself a few things:
- Does your contract require you to disclose outside work?
- Did they pay for the drone?
- Could your side gig create a conflict for your job?
- Is your side gig a competitor to your main job?
If you answered ‘no’ to all, you’re probably fine. But if you said ‘yes’ to any, it’s worth talking to your manager.
Good point. Does your contract include a non-compete? If they’re asking you to do this outside regular hours, it might be because of insurance or legal reasons.
Are you using any company equipment for your side work? Is there any overlap between your clients and your company’s? Could anyone mistake you as a representative of your main job while doing your side gig?
Marin said:
Are you using any company equipment for your side work? Is there any overlap between your clients and your company’s? Could anyone mistake you as a representative of your main job while doing your side gig?
Nope, everything is mine and my side clients aren’t related to the company. They’re all in real estate while my job focuses on high-rise construction. I only represent my own business.
Marin said:
Are you using any company equipment for your side work? Is there any overlap between your clients and your company’s? Could anyone mistake you as a representative of your main job while doing your side gig?
Nope, everything is mine and my side clients aren’t related to the company. They’re all in real estate while my job focuses on high-rise construction. I only represent my own business.
Then it sounds like you’re in the clear. Just be careful—many companies ask if employees have outside income. Ours sends out a yearly form with two questions:
-
Do you have any extra income sources? Explain.
-
Do you know of any coworkers with outside income? Explain.
If you don’t want your company to know, don’t mention it to anyone at work either.
Nope.
Isan said:
I work at an engineering firm and was hired to do drone shots for their projects for social media. They made it clear it has to be done outside work hours or on weekends. The problem is I already run a drone business on weekends for real estate shoots. Should I tell them about this? I have someone to handle the editing part to save me time.
You’re not obligated to tell them. And if you do, they might just pile more work on you without extra pay. Better to keep it to yourself unless you’re getting something out of it.
Isan said:
I work at an engineering firm and was hired to do drone shots for their projects for social media. They made it clear it has to be done outside work hours or on weekends. The problem is I already run a drone business on weekends for real estate shoots. Should I tell them about this? I have someone to handle the editing part to save me time.
Why hide it? If they don’t like it, that’s their problem. Are you salaried or hourly? Either way, if they’re asking for off-hours work, that’s something to think about. I run my own drone business alongside my full-time job, and my company is okay with it because I’m upfront about it.