As if one cleared job wasn’t stressful enough, in a post-COVID, remote-work friendly cleared job market, some tech professionals, in particular, are asking why settle for one cleared job when you could have two. A question was recently posed about if holding multiple remote cleared jobs, specifically, might be illegal or cause any clearance issues.
The key issue around almost any clearance topic is the need for transparency and honesty. The first question to ask when it comes to holding multiple remote cleared jobs is (A) is it actually possible to do both jobs, and then (B), are you willing to be up front with both employers about your multiple jobs?
Working multiple cleared jobs doesn’t necessarily violate any security clearance policies. The issue would be if you didn’t disclose a second job on your SF-86, one employer found out about it, and then reported you for a personal conduct violation. The SF-86 requirements including listing things like a side hustle, so a secondary full-time job would certainly fall under the reporting requirements.
The other issue obviously comes down to whether you honestly think you can perform two full-time jobs well. With shift work and flexible schedules the norm, it may seem doable – but few employers are going to be okay with you taking on a salaried position that you’re doing alongside another salaried position – and issues of time card fraud or misuse of IT systems can absolutely tank your clearance eligibility.
Beyond intentional personal conduct issues, working for multiple employers certainly opens up issues of potential negligence or accidental disclosures or mishaps. And whether your sloppy security practices are intentional or the unfortunate biproduct of being stretched too thin may not make a difference when it comes time to adjudicate an issue.
The short answer is yes, it actually may be possible to work multiple cleared job, but that doesn’t mean it’s wise.
