- Ashutosh Gupta chose not to fire an employee caught moonlighting but revised company policy
- The employee was freelancing for the company's client and hid it due to financial need
- Gupta believes the change promotes transparency, skill growth, and longer employee retention
Ashutosh Gupta, the Chief Business Officer at Praper Media, explained why he didn't fire an employee who was moonlighting, meaning working another job in addition to a full-time job. Instead, he decided to revise company policy. His decision has sparked a discussion on workplace transparency and growth. The employee, a junior staff member, was secretly freelancing for the company's own client. But Gupta chose to address the issue by introducing a clear moonlighting policy with defined boundaries.
"We once caught an employee freelancing for our own client. And we still didn't fire him. Here's why: He was a junior, new to the industry, probably didn't realise how serious this was. So we gave him a warning and asked why he felt the need to hide it," he wrote in a LinkedIn post.
"He said that he needed extra money. And he felt like it was wrong to freelance on the side. That's when we realised that the issue was on our side."
Also read | Boy Reveals NEET Aspirant Sister Spends 10 Hours A Day Talking To AI Chatbots: 'Situation Beyond Repair'
See the post here:
Also read | 11-Year-Old Aces "Touch And Go" Manoeuvre In Viral Training Clip, Takes Internet By Storm
Here's what he did
Gupta said he realised that the issue was on their side as they allowed freelancing, but loosely. He said that his company then decided to fix the issue, hence, they made it official. "Pay people fairly. Allow freelancing. But define boundaries."
He said they introduced a simple policy with three non-negotiables:
- No work in the same domain
- No use of company systems or data
- No poaching of clients
Gupta believes this change has fostered a more transparent and growth-oriented work environment. Employees can now explore side projects, learn new skills, and stay longer with the company.
"You can't stop employees from freelancing. Ban it, and they either do it anyway or push for higher salaries. So either way, you lose control," he wrote.
Social Media Reaction
The post gained significant traction on social media, with users sharing their point of view. "That is good to see that you are understanding the perspective of your employees and taking initiatives for them," one user wrote in the comment section.
"Let's be honest, majority of business in India is focused on how much time the employee is giving them more than quality of work. When this improves, I'm sure they'll be open to navigating different verticals," said another user.
"Makes sense, though the trade-off is real - over time, freelancing can still compete with internal focus if not managed tightly," a third user argued.
