Cost of living this, rising inflation that — we’ve heard it all.
You might not be surprised to hear that a lot of people are working two (or more) jobs in Australia to get by. But did you know this number is as high as one million?
Yep, one million Australians are currently multiple job-holders, making up 6.7 per cent of all employed people in the country.
The Australian Bureau of Statistics released these findings last month, noting that this rate has risen and remained at an all time high since December 2022.
If that’s not enough of a shock for your system, get this — workers aged 20-24 were the most likely to be working two jobs, making up a whopping 9 per cent of the total figures.
Basically, what we’re hearing is that Gen Z are working a shit tonne.
@earthyg3mini this is a cry for help #relatable #summer #work #retail #worklife #summer ♬ Casual – ⭐️
I spoke with this cohort to find out firsthand their reasons for holding down multiple jobs, and what their thoughts are on these wacky stats.
Show me the money
Your first thought might be money. Duh.
It’s not surprising, either — the cost of living is insanely high, with the increase in living costs for all household types now higher than the increase in the Consumer Price Index for the first time since December 2010.
In simple terms, our cost of living is higher than our measure of inflation. That’s bollocks.
The cost of living has gotten so high, I’m thinking about having a nap for dinner
— Ghostface Kryllah (@kryzazzy) March 29, 2025
Britt, a physiotherapist, spent her uni days juggling full-time study with the rising costs of living out of home.
“There weren’t a lot of businesses that were willing to work with my changing uni schedule. I ended up working two main jobs, and two supplementary jobs so I could afford my rent,” Britt said.
“I worked in admin for both a gym and an allied health clinic, as well as house and dog sitting and as a sports trainer on the side.”
You might think that Britt, having now completed her studies, is happily settled into one full-time job.You would be WRONG.
“Currently, I work full-time as a physiotherapist, but I still train clients on the side three to four days a week. When I was working multiple jobs, what I was earning and my savings combined simply didn’t last the full year, so now I’m having to pay off my debts.”
“It didn’t help that I had to undertake 40 weeks of full-time unpaid placement during my studies, which made working super tricky.”
It doesn’t help that for someone like Britt, not working multiple jobs wasn’t an option. The practical nature of her degree meant she had to be face-to-face on campus for a huge chunk of her studies.
“I know so many people working multiple jobs. Even my brother, who has a new grad position in corporate finance, works as a Coles delivery driver three days a week so he can pay off his mortgage.”
Similarly to Britt, Valia, a case manager, found herself needing to juggle multiple jobs during her studies.
“I was working three casual jobs. My typical schedule would be working one job from 8am to 4pm, and then a second job from 5pm to 10pm — sometimes, even later,” said Valia.
“Then, up until two months ago, I was juggling two jobs: a full-time 9-5 position, and a casual retail job on Thursday nights and weekends. I’d average about 60 hours a week.”
If that doesn’t scream insanity, I don’t know what does. Similarly to Britt, Valia too struggled financially without working multiple jobs.
“I wanted to save money, especially knowing that any salary I was offered post-graduation would be quite low. After uni, I continued working multiple jobs because my bills and financial responsibilities only increased.”
“Almost everyone in my family and social circle works multiple jobs. My mum has two, and my sister juggles three. It’s so common now, it’s ridiculous.”
The art of staying busy
Financial incentive aside, other reasons for working multiple jobs might not be as obvious.
Valia noted Sydney’s hustle and bustle as another contributing factor.
“I found it really difficult to not be constantly busy. Sydney’s fast-paced, ‘on-the-go’ lifestyle made me feel unproductive whenever I had a day off,” Valia remarks.
“My personal life wasn’t in the best place, so I used work as a distraction to keep me as occupied as possible.”
staying busy just to run away from your own thoughts is the best thing you can do highly recommended
— ZAR (@walkinggredflag) March 30, 2025
For retail manager, Sarah, keeping busy helped when she made the decision to defer from uni when she was 20.
“I either had the option to study, or work heaps. I chose working heaps. I was working three jobs at one time – in retail, in a warehouse, and also teaching dance classes,” said Sarah.
“Ultimately though, I was still very money driven. Keeping busy was a definite bonus.”
Sarah has since transitioned back to university, and is now working one full-time job. She feels, however, that if she was to move out of home, this wouldn’t be sufficient.
“Working one job now is doable because I still live at home. If I was looking to move out of home or purchase a home for myself, I’d need to pick up a second job for sure.”
Industry barriers to success
Another surprising reason behind working multiple jobs was the inability to find a full-time gig in any given field.
This is especially true for Margaret*, a government employee, who isn’t working two jobs for monetary reasons, but to fill in the gaps with her inability to find full-time work.
“I’ve been working the same retail job since I was 16, and I’m 24 now. Since graduating uni, I have only been able to find a part-time position in my field,” said Margaret.
For Margaret, streamlining to one job is the ultimate goal.
“Ideally, I would be working full-time in my field. For now, I have to stick around at my part-time retail gig, otherwise I wouldn’t be earning enough to live.”
So — what’s the verdict?
Spoiler alert — literally no one I chatted to was surprised by these figures.
“It makes sense that people are working two jobs. It’s a transitional age where a lot of people are trying to get into their desired field,” said Margaret.
“Most people aged 20-24 are likely students, and there’s not many sources of stable or sufficient income for them,” said Britt.
“I know so many people that have dropped out of uni and are now working multiple jobs to pay off their HECS.”
Valia agrees, saying that the financial pressure young people are facing is immense.
“Having multiple streams of income almost feels like a necessity at this age. It goes without saying that housing prices have skyrocketed,” said Valia.
“The financial pressure is so strong, working multiple jobs can feel like the only solution.”
The light at the end of the tunnel seems a little brighter for Sarah.
“I definitely know some people now that work multiple jobs, but that number has gone down. More of my friends now are starting to fall into full-time jobs that can support them,” said Sarah.
@carlosesparza I just wanna get some sleep 😫 #schoollife #worklife #tired ♬ original sound – Carlos Esparza
Whilst there may be other reasons or motivations for holding down multiple jobs, it’s clear that money remains the key motivator behind these streams of employment.
We’re not even just talking ‘fun money’ here, we’re talking literally enough money to pay rent and buy groceries. Pretty basic stuff, if you ask me.
Rising levels of burnout in young people combined with misconceptions that Gen Z are ‘lazy’ all point to a bigger concern here — one surrounding an evolving workforce and economic precariousness that young people can’t simply ‘get over’.
Until there’s a shift, we’ll continue to work our asses off juggling multiple jobs. I don’t know, man, I just work here.
If you’re looking a change to your work sitch, find your dream gig with Pedestrian JOBS.
*Name changed to keep anonymity.
The post ‘Not Earning Enough To Live’: Thousands Of Gen Z Aussies Stuck Working Two Jobs appeared first on PEDESTRIAN.TV .
