Hello all,
Hoping to get thoughts about a tricky situation I’m in regarding my desire to start moonlighting. I’ve worked as a psychologist for a contracting company for a year. Now that I’m a bit more settled in the position, I am hoping to boost my income a bit, so have started to consider opening up a small side private practice (e.g. teletherapy 1-2x/week). I checked the policies and procedures manual for my quite large company, which includes a statement about conflicts of interest and second jobs, which states that “COIs are prohibited unless an employee receives approval”.
About a month ago I contacted my employer by email and thoroughly explained the situation, detailing that my hours would not overlap, etc. The company responded quickly and said they would get back to me about what would be necessary to have a side gig, but did not email me back after their initial reply. After several weeks of hearing nothing, I emailed to kindly remind them of my request and follow up, and received no response from them -- this correspondence included both HR and my direct supervisor.
At this point, I’m at a loss about what to do in terms of correct protocol. I have explicitly tried to get approval, and have evidence of that, but no formal approval or denial. I fear if I keep bothering them, they may be more likely to say no — or that perhaps no formal answer is an “an informal answer” in and of itself (e.g., we won't give formal permission, but if your gov. supervisor finds out and is not happy about it, we didn't give approval). On the other hand, this would be an extremely easy issue to get “caught” from, given that I’m sure my psychology today page, etc, would be one of the top hits on google.
Anyone been in a situation like this? Any thoughts on what to do? FWIW, I know several providers at the VA in my city who have a side PP but who never asked for formal approval to do so. It seems like they operate on more of a “act and ask forgiveness later” model?
Hoping to get thoughts about a tricky situation I’m in regarding my desire to start moonlighting. I’ve worked as a psychologist for a contracting company for a year. Now that I’m a bit more settled in the position, I am hoping to boost my income a bit, so have started to consider opening up a small side private practice (e.g. teletherapy 1-2x/week). I checked the policies and procedures manual for my quite large company, which includes a statement about conflicts of interest and second jobs, which states that “COIs are prohibited unless an employee receives approval”.
About a month ago I contacted my employer by email and thoroughly explained the situation, detailing that my hours would not overlap, etc. The company responded quickly and said they would get back to me about what would be necessary to have a side gig, but did not email me back after their initial reply. After several weeks of hearing nothing, I emailed to kindly remind them of my request and follow up, and received no response from them -- this correspondence included both HR and my direct supervisor.
At this point, I’m at a loss about what to do in terms of correct protocol. I have explicitly tried to get approval, and have evidence of that, but no formal approval or denial. I fear if I keep bothering them, they may be more likely to say no — or that perhaps no formal answer is an “an informal answer” in and of itself (e.g., we won't give formal permission, but if your gov. supervisor finds out and is not happy about it, we didn't give approval). On the other hand, this would be an extremely easy issue to get “caught” from, given that I’m sure my psychology today page, etc, would be one of the top hits on google.
Anyone been in a situation like this? Any thoughts on what to do? FWIW, I know several providers at the VA in my city who have a side PP but who never asked for formal approval to do so. It seems like they operate on more of a “act and ask forgiveness later” model?