US / jobs Hark, the Return of the Side Hustle More US workers have multiple sources of income, especially younger generations By John Johnson Posted Jun 21, 2025 9:00 AM CDT Copied A bicyclist delivers a food order. (Getty / nirat) A slew of new surveys and studies point to a clear trend: Side hustles are back amid worries about what's in store for the economy. More than 6 in 10 US workers say they'll probably get a second job or start a side hustle in the next year, reports HR Dive, citing a report from the American Staffing Association and the Harris Poll. The trend is more pronounced with younger workers, with 76% of millennials and 73% of Gen Z workers in that camp, compared with 59% of Gen X and 37% of boomers. Separate research by Deloitte found that 4 in 10 millennial and Gen Z workers already have second jobs to supplement their income, or to serve as a safety net if the main source goes away, reports the Wall Street Journal. "Holding one job at a time is on the way to becoming antiquated, or a luxury, for emerging generations," writes Callum Borchers of the Journal. Official Labor Department stats show the number of people with more than one job has risen to about 5.5% this year, on par with the recession of the 2000s. However, the government stats are widely seen as being way low because they count only steady jobs. By contrast, 52% of workers say they have side hustles, which might include driving for DoorDash or picking up temporary freelance work of various sorts through Fiverr. A story at Inc. draws a conclusion from the emerging data: Modern employers need to get better at navigating the needs of employees with multiple jobs. (More jobs stories.) Report an error