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While many companies have called employees back to the office, some Americans have managed to retain not just one — but multiple remote jobs.
These people are among a niche group of white-collar workers, dubbed the "overemployed," who are secretly holding two or even three remote jobs at the same time — and getting away with it. While this doesn't violate federal or state laws, it could breach some employment contracts and be a fireable offense.
Avoiding detection can come with big rewards. In recent months, Business Insider has spoken with three job jugglers who have earned over $300,000 a year. They've used the extra money to pay off their mortgages, save for their kids' college education, and plan for an earlier retirement.
To have any chance at avoiding both detection and burnout, finding the right job is crucial, the overemployed said. But with more companies requiring at least some in-person attendance, landing any remote job can be a challenge.
We asked three Americans who've been overemployed in the past year what prospective job jugglers should look for in a new role. They spoke on the condition of anonymity for fear of professional repercussions, but Business Insider has verified their identities and earnings.
John, a millennial IT professional based in California, is on track to earn over $300,000 this year across two full-time remote jobs. He said he'd been able to save over $150,000 since he became overemployed in 2021 and hopes to use these funds to purchase a home in the future.
In addition to being remote, John said the ideal overemployed job has flexible hours, allowing employees to finish work when it's most convenient. If a job has "core hours" — hours when all employees must be working — it's important to have minimal overlap with a second job, he added.
Global companies, which often have employees across multiple time zones, can be particularly accommodating of employees' schedules, John said.
"Distributed teams like that tend to be fairly good about scheduling meetings at times that work for everyone."
Companies that provide flexible working arrangements for parents can be a good fit as well. John said he has some overemployed friends who pretend to have children to avoid the occasional meeting — they say they have to shuttle their kids to and from daycare.
John tries to avoid lying like this if at all possible, but he said he still comes up with excuses from time to time.
"If I am unavailable due to a meeting at the other company, it's due to an 'appointment' and no one ever asks for more info," he said.
He pointed to two job boards — Remote.co and Remotejobs.io — which he said are helpful for finding remote roles.
Justin, an IT engineer in his 50s, earned over $300,000 last year secretly working three full-time, remote jobs.
In addition to providing him with a high level of job security, he said the extra income had helped him pay off debts and turn his dream of retiring at age 65 into a potential reality.
When looking for a second role, Justin said it's important to be very good at the type of work detailed in the job description.
"I couldn't do a job that required a lot of training or required any kind of ramp-up period," he said.
In the long run, Justin said it's important to be good, not great at one's job — good enough to avoid suspicion but not good enough to warrant a promotion or extra job responsibilities. But early on, he said being "great" can be helpful.
"You have to earn the ability to miss a meeting or deadline occasionally," he said.
Joseph, a network engineer in his late 40s, earned $344,000 last secretly working three full-time remote jobs. He said the extra income helped him pay off the remaining $129,000 on his mortgage. Someday, he hoped the boost to his savings would allow him to send his children to college debt-free.
Joseph was recently laid off from two of his jobs and is not currently overemployed, but he said his job juggling was never exposed.
He told Business Insider that overemployment is easier for workers in the IT industry.
"In the IT world, we never really work a full 40 hours a week," he said.
Having bosses who care more about work output — and less about the number of hours worked — makes it easier to juggle multiple jobs, he added.
While it's not always possible, Joseph said having a good friend at one or both of your jobs can help avoid suspicion. He said he had this at two of his three jobs.
"I really just needed someone on the inside to understand there might be a meeting I miss here or there," he said.
Are you working multiple remote jobs at the same time and willing to provide details about your pay and schedule? If so, reach out to this reporter at jzinkula@insider.com.
