After information technology (IT) majors Wipro and Infosys, IBM India too joined the chorus on moonlighting, saying it is a violation of trust, policy and creates a potential conflict of interest.
IBM’s MD for India and South Asia Sandip Patel, in an internal communication to employees, said “the moonlighting concept can cause a lot of confusion if not clarified at a granular level.”
The practice of moonlighting, or working simultaneously for a rival company, part-time, full-time, or contractual is a failure to comply with the terms of employment and a potential conflict of interest with that of IBM’s, the ToI reported on Wednesday, citing the note.
Of late, the issue of moonlighting has emerged as a big talking point in the IT industry. In the last 30 days, large IT companies have made it clear that they do not approve of dual employment.
Last month, Wipro gave the pink slips to some 300 staffers for doing another job secretively as the company toughens its stand against employees taking up secondary job after regular work hours.
Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) and Infosys have said they are against dual employment. However, Infosys has allowed staffers to take up external gig work with prior consent of managers provided such an engagement does not clash with the company, its clients or pose conflict of interest.
Earlier, Patel had said that moonlighting is unethical. “At IBM, our stance has always been clear: we encourage every IBMer to bring their whole selves to work. Your passion – be it for art, dance, or music is celebrated here, and in that spirit, we’d love to see you pursue your interests. However, if you advance a personal interest, whether directly or indirectly, at the expense of IBM’s interests, it is treated as a serious conflict of interest and a violation of trust,” the note said.
Elucidating how a second job could create a conflict of interest with the company’s interests, IBM note mentions: “as an individual, for example, you may operate a small business, but if you spend your work time at IBM doing the same, it will conflict with your official duties to IBM. Another example would be you working with competitors in the market over weekends; even though you do so in personal time, it is still a conflict and in breach of your employment obligations.”
