The Overemployment Trend — Even Among Developers?

A Shocking Reddit Post

On r/overemployed, I read: "I'm simultaneously working three full-time remote developer jobs." Combined salary: $480,000. They claimed each company only needed 15-20 hours per week from them.

My first reaction: "Is this even possible?" But the comments were full of similar stories. The logic: in a fully remote setup, if actual coding takes 3-4 hours a day, the rest is available for another employer.

Does This Happen in Korea?

Nobody I personally know. But I've heard the "a friend of a friend does it" version two or three times. Usually a full-remote developer taking on an additional freelance contract. It's not quite the American-style dual full-time employment.

In Korea, double enrollment in the national social insurance system (a mandatory four-part insurance covering health, pension, employment, and industrial accident) would immediately flag the situation. So true dual employment is hard. A full-time job plus freelance work (under a business registration) is technically possible. Moonlighting isn't illegal per se, but most employment contracts include non-compete or exclusive employment clauses.

I'd Be Lying If I Said I Wasn't Tempted

Monthly salary $2,300, side project income $135. Add one freelance contract and that's potentially $1,100-1,450 more per month. Over $14,000 annually. Those numbers are tempting.

But cold calculation: 40 hours main job + 15 hours side job + side project + life. Without cutting sleep, it's impossible. I need 7 hours to function. Cut sleep and code quality craters.

Someone Who Tried It

Read this on Blind (an anonymous professional social app popular in Korea's tech industry). A remote developer did it for three months:

• Month 1: No problems. Decent performance at both.
• Month 2: Meetings started overlapping. A Slack notification from Company B buzzed during Company A's standup. Cold sweat.
• Month 3: Burnout. Working weekends to catch up on backlog. Quit one job.

Their conclusion: "Three months is doable. Six months isn't."

The Risks Are Significant

Legal risk. Violating an exclusivity clause can be grounds for discipline or termination. Worst case: damages claims.

Reputation risk. The tech industry is small. "That person got caught with two jobs" spreads fast. In Korea's developer community, these stories travel quickly and can be career-damaging.

Performance risk. Running 80% at two places means B- evaluations at both. Going 100% at one means A ratings, raises, promotions. Long-term math is worth doing.

Health risk. Most overlooked but most important. Burnout recovery takes months. The opportunity cost of burnout can exceed the extra income.

A Better Form of Side Income

I think building your own thing beats working two jobs. Side projects, courses, tech blogging, open source contributions. These create synergy with your main job, look good on a resume, and let you control your own time.

My side project income of $135/month is less than a second job's potential $1,450. But the infrastructure knowledge I gained building it helped my main job too. A second job sells your time. A side project builds an asset.

Of course, if you need money urgently, this idealistic talk doesn't land. But before starting a second job, seriously ask: "Is this sustainable three months from now?"