Cost Of Living Crisis Drives Australians To Take Up Side Hustles

A new study has revealed that there was a notable uptick in Australians taking up second jobs or "side hustles" to meet the lifestyle they desire, amid the soaring cost of living.

The demand for part-time or contract jobs has been on the rise, with an estimated 986,400 people (6.6% of employed individuals) now doing multiple jobs, per a study by the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

The report noted that women account for the majority of the statistics of multiple job holders, with 7.7% of employed women juggling multiple roles compared to 5.8% of employed men. People between the ages of 20-24 were also more likely to have multiple jobs, with 8.7% holding multiple positions.

The study mentioned that 10.1% of community and personal service workers were taking up multiple roles.

These insights were based on data from the Labor Account, Labor Force, and Jobs in Australia.

According to Professor Angela Knox of the University of Sydney Business School, the primary driving force behind the massive inclination toward side hustles was the rising cost of living fueled by inflation, ABC reported.

"Wage growth has not been matching the rate of inflation growth," she told the ABC. "That means that for most people, they're suffering a real wage cut. To be able to meet their costs ... they're potentially picking up extra work."

Another major cause behind people holding several jobs was underemployment, or working fewer hours than expected. Knox said this causes people to "piece together" extra jobs to augment their hours and get a full-time job.

"So they're picking up extra work on the side to be able to bolster their regular income, to be able to meet their regular commitments."

Painter Frank Hoyt told ABC, painter Frank Hoyt said, "I'm constantly sort of chasing my tail with the bills. It's hard. It's not just rent and everything else that's gone up but the cost of materials and stuff like that for work."

Hoyt told ABC that he has a business fixing cars damaged by hail, but since it was seasonal, he had to take up a second job as a painter. Initially, the painting was a way to fund his Marvel toy collection hobby, but now it helped pay his bills, although it was also impacted by inflation.

"It's hard to even get jobs. Because when you give someone a quote they start to take a step back and have to think about what they have to spend money on," he said. "Lately they've had to seek out a second job, whether it's taking stuff to the tip, to the dump, or mowing the lawns, you know, stuff you don't need skills for."