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Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesFind Drivers →Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →In the U.S., often yes—but not in every case. A private employer may have broad discretion to fire an at-will worker for secretly holding another job, particularly if the work violates a written rule, competes with the employer, creates a conflict, or interferes with scheduling or performance. State law, employment agreements, the worker’s public- or private-sector status, and the reason for termination can change the answer.
Why the answer depends on your job and location
At-will employment is a baseline, not a universal rule
In many U.S. workplaces, an at-will employee can be discharged without a stated reason, subject to legal limits such as protections against discrimination and unlawful retaliation, and any contract that limits termination. The New York State Department of Labor describes this general rule for New York; it is not a fifty-state summary. Other states may have different laws or protections.
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Public employees may face separate restrictions
Federal executive-branch employees must follow federal ethics rules on outside employment. Under 5 CFR §§ 2635.801–2635.802, outside activity that conflicts with official duties is restricted, and some agencies require advance approval. The U.S. Department of Labor’s federal employee guidance also discusses recusal where a conflict arises. These rules apply to covered federal employees, not ordinary private-sector workers. State and local government employees should check their own agency and ethics rules.
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The practical issue is often not simply that you have another job, but whether the arrangement violates a rule or creates a problem for your current employer. Relevant facts include:
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- Competition or divided loyalty: The work competes for the same customers, or you solicit your employer’s customers or employees for your own business.
- Confidential information: You use or disclose customer, business, or other protected information.
- Employer resources or paid time: You use company equipment, systems, supplies, or work hours for the second job.
- Scheduling, attendance, or safety: The outside work causes missed shifts, performance problems, fatigue-related safety concerns, or a conflict with agreed availability.
- Written restrictions: An agreement or workplace policy requires disclosure or approval, limits conflicts, or sets expectations about schedules, confidentiality, or company property.
California Employment Development Department guidance on unemployment-benefit misconduct gives examples involving an employee who solicited the employer’s technicians for a competing business and an employee who used employer parts in a competing business. Those are California benefit-adjudication examples, not a nationwide legal test for firing.
Do you have to tell your employer?
There is no single disclosure rule for every U.S. worker. Check your employment agreement, offer letter, current handbook, conflict-of-interest policy, and any outside-work approval process. Look for language about disclosure, prior approval, exclusivity, competing work, confidentiality, scheduling, and use of company property. Whether a particular policy or contract term can be enforced depends on the governing law and the facts; a policy’s existence alone does not settle that question.
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If you have a policy version or approval email, keep a copy. If you are unsure what a rule means, asking for written clarification before starting overlapping work may reduce uncertainty, though it does not replace advice about your state’s law.
Washington protects some lower-wage workers from restrictions on additional work
Washington has a specific statutory protection. Under RCW 49.62.070, an employer generally may not restrict an employee who earns less than twice the applicable state minimum hourly wage from taking another job, working as an independent contractor, or being self-employed. The statute allows restrictions when the additional work raises safety concerns or interferes with reasonable and normal scheduling expectations, and it preserves legal duties of loyalty and compliance with conflict-of-interest laws.
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In January 2025, the Washington State Attorney General reported that the state Supreme Court interpreted the statute’s restriction exceptions narrowly for covered workers, while recognizing that employers may enforce restrictions consistent with an employee’s duty of loyalty. This is a Washington-specific rule, and coverage depends on the statutory conditions; it should not be assumed to apply elsewhere.
How to assess your situation
- Identify the governing rules. Start with the state where you work and whether you are employed by a private company, the federal government, or a state or local agency.
- Read the current written terms. Review your agreement and workplace policies for outside-work disclosure or approval, conflicts, confidentiality, schedules, and equipment use.
- Separate the two jobs in practice. Keep the second job on personal time and use personal equipment. Do not use your employer’s data, customers, systems, supplies, or paid hours unless the employer has authorized it and applicable law permits it.
- Check for a specific protection. For example, determine whether Washington’s additional-work statute applies to your wages and circumstances, or whether public-employment ethics rules govern your position.
- Get jurisdiction-specific advice if the stakes are immediate. If your employer has raised the issue or termination is threatened, preserve relevant policies and communications. Consider speaking with an employment lawyer in your state before resigning or signing a release or separation agreement.
What the available examples do—and do not—show
The New York Department of Labor’s at-will explanation, Washington’s statute, federal ethics regulations, and California’s unemployment guidance address different jurisdictions and worker categories. None establishes one nationwide rule that every employer can—or cannot—fire every worker for holding a second job. The decisive details are the governing law, any binding terms, the worker’s category, and what the outside work actually involves.
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