This week, we are stepping outside the 9 to 5. Side hustles, second jobs, crafting and more have boomed as millions of workers embraced working from home during the pandemic. Isabel talks to Tim Fung, co-founder of Airtasker, a platform for buying and selling services and skills, used by many as a way to earn extra cash. How does he cope with his own staff’s side hustles?

Taylor Nicole Rogers, the FT’s US labour and equality correspondent, explains that many people have two jobs because of shortfalls in pay. But during the pandemic many of us lost touch with our workplaces and focused on developing a sense of personal purpose and identity. Building an Etsy business or sock-selling empire is one expression of that - and having tasted freedom, it’s easier to walk away from a main job.

Isabel and Taylor come up with strategies for managers dealing with staff side hustles.    

Want to read more? 

Follow Taylor Nicole Rogers on FT.com for her reporting on employment trends https://www.ft.com/taylor-nicole-rogers

The banker turned bamboo socks seller  https://www.ft.com/content/5f0e6c76-7cda-4b62-bb2f-36fd4771efaa

Financial influencer Ken Okoroafor on how his side hustle TheHumblePenny.com became a big business https://www.ft.com/content/27eff0d1-e2d0-4e41-afaf-c2aadf437873

We love to hear from you. What do you like (or not)? What topics should we tackle in 2022? Email the team at [email protected] or Isabel directly at [email protected]. Follow @isabelberwick on Twitter 

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Presented by Isabel Berwick. Editorial direction from Renée Kaplan. Assistant producer is Persis Love. Sound design is by Breen Turner, with original music from Metaphor Music. Produced by Novel.

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