U.S. workers increasingly add side income as younger generations face savings strain

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U.S. workers add side income

Highlights

Goldman Sachs Asset Management and Escalent's July survey found over 60% of Americans work outside their primary jobs mainly for needed additional income.
83% of Gen Z and 78% of millennials delayed major financial goals, with 41% of millennials and 35% of Gen Z postponing emergency savings due to financial strain.
Younger workers increasingly diversify income through side gigs and portfolio careers, sometimes converting supplemental work into primary occupations for financial flexibility.

Survey findings on side work demand

As reported by Business Insider, citing Goldman Sachs Asset Management, a July survey conducted with behavioral economics firm Escalent found that more than 60% of Americans have worked outside their primary roles, largely because they needed the additional income.

The retirement report said only 27% of respondents feel their work covers expenses while still making it easy to get ahead. It added that employment remains essential for retirement security, but for many Americans it is no longer sufficient.

Gen Z workers are the most likely to say they earn or have earned money outside their main job, with millennials close behind. The report said many younger workers still describe their primary employment as financially stabilizing, but continue to see extra work as necessary for security and progress toward major goals.

Pressure on savings and career choices

Across generations, most respondents say they are doing gig or side work out of necessity or to build financial security, reflecting how the traditional full-time job is no longer carrying the full weight of household finances.

That pressure is showing up in delayed savings and spending plans. Eighty-three percent of Gen Z and 78% of millennials say they are putting major financial goals on hold, while 41% of millennials and 35% of Gen Z say they have delayed emergency savings; 30% of millennials and 34% of Gen Z say they have postponed housing or homebuying plans.

The broader response ranges from part-time side jobs to more aggressive forms of income diversification. Some workers are taking on multiple full-time remote roles, while others are building what career advisers call a portfolio career, combining freelance work, side gigs and office employment to spread risk and create more flexibility.

For some, that extra work develops into a full career shift. The article cites Harlan Rappaport, who turned an email marketing side hustle into a full-time freelance career after working as an investment analyst, highlighting how supplemental income can evolve from a financial buffer into a primary occupation.

In our earlier article on the wage benefits of early-career job-hopping, we explained that switching jobs is often a key mechanism for younger workers to boost pay and find better long-term role matches. The piece highlighted research suggesting that avoiding moves early on can limit earnings growth, despite cultural skepticism about short tenures.

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