What made you do moonlighting? A tale from the Indonesian labor force survey

This study aimed to assess the effects of main job security on moonlighting decisions at the individual level. It analyzed the Sakernas (Indonesian Labor Force Survey) dataset from 2016 to 2019. The findings showed a negative correlation between main job security and moonlighting decisions. Furthermore, the study treated the main income as a control variable and observed the interaction with job security. This observation showed that the marginal effects of job security varied depending on the income level. Holding the main income constant at the lowest level showed positive marginal effects. However, when the main income is held constant at higher levels, the positive marginal effects slowly diminish. By holding the main income constant at a higher level, the marginal effects would become negative. These findings originated from stronger financial incentives at lower income and weaker financial motives at higher income levels. Therefore, this study showed that low-income workers seem to treat moonlighting as a necessity rather than an option.