30% of Canadians work on their own as well as their permanent employment

More than 30% of Canadians work on their own as well as having a main job according to a survey by Sage Canada.

42% of respondents in this report say they have more than one job and 16% work in jobs such as Uber drivers, food delivery applications such as Foodora or Skip The Dishes.

More than half of the participants in this survey say they want a better schedule flexibility and a better life balance.

For this last reason, Jermel Pierre, a Toronto resident, works by day as director of business development for a cannabis company and at night as a fitness instructor at his company called RxFit.

The 30-year-old thinks that his business project, which he affectionately calls 'side hustle', gives him a supplementary safety net in the financial plan.

In order to reach the end of the month, live the life we ​​want and prepare for retirement, we have to work harder. And this side hustle allows us to do it.

– Jermel Pierre

Beyond his personal finances, Jermel Pierre believes that his second job motivates him and helps him to have a balanced life. Hacer ’Doing the same thing for eight hours a day is very boring. ’’

Passion

Another reason (39%) that lead workers to create their own company is the desire to combine their professional life with their passion. 38% of respondents mention as a reason the fact of being able to control their work environment.

The financial factor is the fifth in the list of the reasons evoked by the respondents of this report.

According to the general director of Sage Canada, Paul Struthers, Millennials are the age group that are most interested in this type of complementary employment. "Thanks to technology, it is easier to launch into business," explains the CEO.

Many Canadians clearly have enough ambition and energy to consecrate to these side hustle et this indicates that they see real business opportunities, that they want to find new customers and poorly stocked market parts.

-Paul Struthers, CEO of Sage Canada

He also believes that the business community and the government play an important role in the development of small businesses. «Politicians and businessmen must do everything they can to support this entrepreneurial spirit because, who knows if suddenly one of these small companies could become the next Uber one day.»

Precarious conditions

Last January, the Bank of Canada revealed the results of a study similar to that of Sage Canada, which also showed that one third of Canadians had an atypical job or a small job.

«For many people it is a secondary activity that completes their income. But among these workers, the representation of young people and residents of the provinces where the unemployment rate is historically high is higher than normal ”, articulates the first deputy governor of the Bank of Canada, Carolyn Wilkins.

These jobs may have advantages such as the possibility of working at your leisure – think, among others, of Uber drivers – but many of these workers want more stability

-Carolyn Wilkins, first deputy governor of the Bank of Canada

Carolyn Wilkins adds that this new category of atypical jobs reduces the bargaining power of workers.

New career

For certain people, the side hustle can fully become his career.

This was the case of Hugo Filipe who worked for three years in a marketing agency, while cultivating, at the same time his passion as an influencer in social networks and agent of artists. Last July, he decided to leave his main job.

I reached a point where my permanent employment prevented me from advancing in my other projects

-Hugo Filipe

‘’ Now I work for myself, where I want and set my own schedule. I work hard, but I live my life the way I want it and I get to pay all my bills, '' says the 27-year-old Toronto man, before adding that his income also reaches him to save money for travel and his pension.

– With the information of Philippe De Montigny