So Fred Flintstone needed some extra money for some reason (I think Wilma was pregnant with Pebbles, and Fred was worrying about the bills for the new baby). Lacking ideas for some money-making scheme, he did the honorable thing and got a night job. I remember Fred going to great lengths to keep Mr. Slate from finding out, lest he (Fred) get fired for “moonlighting.”
I know that The Flintstones was written in the 60’s and thus the writers wrote from their 60’s mindsets. So back in those days, could you get fired for moonlighting?
(And yes, I know that in some states, you can be fired from your job for any reason or for no reason. What I mean is, were you likely to get fired for moonlighting?)
Yes, it used to be more common. My employee handbook today reads something like: “No outside employment or volunteer efforts that may interfere with or create the appearance of conflict with your duties to us…” The prohibition used to be much stronger, especially for white-collar workers. IIRC, RCA, for instance, used to absolutely prohibit it for salaried workers.
I work as an engineer for an engineering consulting firm. My company’s personnel practices manual states, in part:
"Employment outside of working hours is strongly discouraged…No outside work is to be done for any client of the company or any other employer that could represent a conflict of interest…You should be aware of possible liability risk involved when outside work is performed by engineers known to be associated with a given company. In the event of actual or alleged faulty performance, it is possible that the primary employer may in some way be held accountable…
…The company [also] asks that the employee think seriously about the effects that such extra work may have on the limits of his/her endurance, overall personal health, and effectiveness with the company…"
The rules at my job are that I can’t work more than 20 hours a week at a second job, and the second job has to be approved by the agency. Would I get fired if I broke the rules? Probably not, but there would be disciplinary action.