Barely anyone gives a second thought to what they get up to after they clock out from work. Once you throw your lanyard into your bag, your time should be yours, right? Not always. These days, bosses expect you to let them know what you’re up to—even when you’re not on the payroll clock. Whether you’re freelancing on the weekend, running a side hustle, volunteering for a charity, or even sitting on the board of your kids’ footy club, these activities can fall under what HR teams call “outside activities.” It gets tricky fast, trust me. One minute you’re running a Saturday market stall for fun; the next, you’re filling out compliance paperwork.

Defining Outside Activities: Not Just About Moonlighting

So, what exactly does the term "outside activities" mean? In the simplest sense, it covers any work, service, or involvement you have that isn’t your main job. Most people assume it’s just about picking up another paid gig for extra cash—that’s the classic "moonlighting." But it goes way further. Unpaid work, memberships, consulting gigs, mentoring, volunteering, and even investing in a mate’s startup can all end up on the radar. Laws in countries like Australia, the US, and the UK all touch on these things, often in surprising ways. Even something that looks like pure fun can trigger red flags if it overlaps with your job or company interests.

Ever heard of a software engineer at a bank getting in hot water for coding freelance on the side? It’s not rare—companies worry about intellectual property getting copied or misused. Then there’s the ethics part: What if you’re making business deals for a charity that also does business with your main employer? See the twist? The point is, outside activities cover much more ground than most people think. They even include passive stuff, like holding shares in a direct competitor. According to an Australian HR specialist I chatted with last month, “If it could risk the company’s reputation or your attention at work, it’s probably an outside activity.”

Why Do Companies Care About What You Do Outside Work?

Now you might wonder: why do companies get so nosy about this stuff? It boils down to two biggies: conflicts of interest and protecting their own brand. First, let’s talk about conflicts. If you’re spending after-hours consulting for the competition, or you’re sitting on a committee making decisions that overlap with your day job, your judgment might get fuzzy—even unintentionally. In 2023, a high-profile Australian government adviser got grilled for working with a policy think-tank that lobbied the same agencies he worked for. It made headlines and forced new rules across several departments.

The other reason is reputation. All it takes is for one employee to do something dodgy after hours—maybe they’re seen as representing the company, or use company resources for their side hustle. Boom, the company can get dragged into a scandal they had no idea about. Some companies even set up AI tracking to scan public side gigs on LinkedIn to prevent PR disasters. You might think you’re just helping out by mentoring students, but if your advice conflicts with company policy, you can get a warning or worse.

Here’s a nugget from the legal side. The Australian Public Service Commission says:

An employee’s private interests must not improperly influence their work or decision-making for the government.

That’s strict. Private and professional lives mix more than most people admit—and that’s why companies monitor, and sometimes restrict, certain outside activities.

Common Examples of Outside Activities

You might be surprised how far this definition stretches. To make it less abstract, let’s break it down into clear examples:

• Paid second jobs: Working retail, driving for Uber, tutoring, or any job outside your normal hours counts—and needs to be disclosed to your boss in many cases. Especially if it’s in a similar industry.
• Unpaid volunteering: Running a charity drive, coaching junior sports, or sitting on school boards—if the work takes significant time or decision power, you should flag it. It’s not about payment, it’s about influence and commitment.
• Professional memberships: If you’re a member of another industry body, a standards board, or you speak at conferences, these count as outside activities. Sometimes, being listed as an expert gives the impression you speak for your main employer—even when you don’t.
• Investments or business interests: Maybe you’re a silent partner in a family café, or you own shares in a competitor. HR teams in big firms check these things now, after a wave of corporate scandals revealed employees trading on inside info.
• Freelance or consulting gigs: If you design websites, give legal advice, or write copy for others after hours, that’s an outside activity. Even doing an occasional gig through Airtasker or Upwork is on the list these days.
• Side hustles and startups: Got an Etsy shop? Making and selling earrings on weekends? It usually counts—even if it seems totally separate from your day job—because of overlapping skills or time involved.

I once saw a software tester almost lose their job for fixing bugs on a mate’s app—he thought it was harmless, but the company saw it as moonlighting in the same industry. The details matter more than most folks realize.

How Outside Activities Relate to Compliance and Workplace Ethics

If you’re wondering, “Do I really need to tell my boss about my trivia night hosting gig?”, the answer is almost always: better safe than sorry. Companies usually require disclosure if your outside activities cross any of these lines: potential for a conflict of interest, risk to the company’s reputation, or possible interference with your usual work performance. Not every company has the same rules, but bigger corporations and government employers often have strict policies. In Australia, one big bank’s employee policy explicitly says you have to declare outside business activities—even podcasts or blogs if they relate to banking topics!

Here’s where it gets sticky: sometimes people assume non-paid gigs don’t count, but that’s not how compliance officers see it. For example, volunteering as treasurer at a sports club means you’re managing money—skills that overlap with office roles, and that raises compliance flags. Or say you’re developing an app as a side project, and your main job is in IT. It’s not even close to competing, but if you ever use company equipment for it? That could be a disciplinary offense.

Ethics also play a part. If workmates or even customers spot you doing something outside that could look questionable (“Hey, why is our HR manager also running a rival recruiting business on weekends?”), it can damage trust inside your workplace. Some companies even enforce “cooling off periods”—for example, after leaving a job, you can’t work for or start a business in the same field for a year. It’s all about protecting trade secrets and loyalty.

Companies use a range of tools for compliance. Disclosure forms, mandatory training, one-on-one reviews with HR—and sometimes random checks of your public online activity. If you’re unsure, transparency is your best friend. Better to bring it up than have HR come knocking after they spot your LinkedIn side gig or your business registration in a search.

Tips for Navigating Outside Activities Without Getting in Trouble

This stuff isn’t meant to scare you out of living your life. Plenty of people in Melbourne (and all over) manage outside activities without the slightest blowback. A few practical steps help you avoid drama:

• Know your company’s policy. If you’re hazy on the details, search the intranet or talk to HR. Every big company posts these rules—sometimes buried in the employee handbook, but they’re there.
• Disclose early, not late. Found an exciting opportunity? Run it past your boss or HR before signing up. Many companies just want to know, not stop you.
• Keep work and outside gigs separate. Never use your job’s laptop, email, or contacts. Not even once. Audit trails are easy to follow, and sharing corporate info (even by accident) can end careers.
• Time management matters. If you’re teaching yoga on Tuesdays and then rocking up to work exhausted, managers will notice. Don’t let side hustles mess with your 9-to-5 performance.
• Check for conflicts yearly. Interests shift, and what was fine last year might not be now—e.g., if your hobby project grows or if your employer starts dealing with a new client in your side gig’s industry.
• If in doubt, ask. Most managers prefer a five-minute chat over a compliance headache later down the line.
• Document everything. If you declare something, save a copy. If you ever need to prove you disclosed, you’ll thank yourself later.
• Stay updated. Companies tweak these rules every few years, especially after headline scandals or when regulations change. Watch for all-staff emails—buried in the legalese, but worth a read.

Plenty of staff—across finance, tech, health, you name it—successfully juggle interesting side activities. Being upfront is honestly the best policy. As one HR manager told me over coffee at Federation Square, "Transparency keeps everybody safe. We’re not out to kill hobbies—we just need to manage risk." Simple as that.