Multi-activity Compatibility: Legal Implications

Carrying on several activities at the same time is lawful under French law, and that is the guiding principle. The limits, therefore, do not stem from a general prohibition, but from three sets of rules that apply in parallel: maximum working hours, obligations arising from the employment contract, and special statuses. Conflating these three levels leads one to believe that combining activities is prohibited when it is simply poorly organised — or the reverse, which is more dangerous.

The principle: freedom, subject to exceptions

No provision prohibits an employee from carrying on another activity outside working hours. He or she may set up a company, carry on a self-employed activity, or take up a second salaried job.

This freedom has a practical consequence that is often overlooked: the employee has no general obligation to inform the employer of an activity carried on outside working hours. Such an obligation exists only if a clause of the contract provides for it, or if the situation touches on one of the limits set out below.

First limit: maximum working hours

This is the strictest limit, and the only one whose breach also engages the employer's liability.

Where an employee combines several salaried jobs, the total hours worked may not exceed the maximum legal limits: ten hours per day, forty-eight hours in a week, and an average of forty-four hours over twelve consecutive weeks. These caps are assessed across all employers combined.

An employer who is aware of an irregular combination of activities and allows it to continue exposes itself to penalties. This is why many employers request a sworn statement regarding compliance with maximum working hours: this request is legitimate, even though no information about the nature of the activity is owed.

Combining a salaried job with a self-employed activity does not fall within this cap, as self-employed activity is not counted as working time. The calculation of hours owed under the first job remains governed by the ordinary rules, set out in our article on overtime.

Second limit: obligations arising from the contract

Three distinct mechanisms, often confused:

The duty of loyalty exists without any clause. It prohibits the employee from carrying on an activity that competes with that of the employer during the term of the contract, and from diverting customers or information. It applies at all times, including during leave and periods when the contract is suspended.

The exclusivity clause prohibits any other professional activity, even a non-competing one. Its validity is conditional: it must be essential to protecting the company's legitimate interests, justified by the nature of the task, and proportionate to the aim pursued. A general exclusivity clause, inserted as a matter of course in every contract, is regularly set aside. It is, moreover, unenforceable for a set period against an employee who sets up or takes over a company, as well as against part-time employees — for whom it would amount to prohibiting them from supplementing their income.

The non-compete clause only takes effect after termination of the contract. Its validity requires a limitation in time and space, the protection of legitimate interests, consideration of the specifics of the job, and above all financial compensation. Without compensation, it is void.

The distinction is decisive: a poorly drafted exclusivity clause does not prevent combining activities during the term of the contract, and a non-compete clause, even a valid one, has no effect while the contract is ongoing. These stipulations fall under the general obligations set out in our article on the employer's legal obligations.

Third limit: special statuses

Certain statuses reverse the principle.

Public officials are, in principle, subject to an obligation of exclusive exercise of their duties, with regulated exceptions: production of creative works, ancillary activities subject to authorisation, and temporary combination for setting up a company.

Certain regulated professions are subject to their own incompatibility rules, set by their regulations or code of ethics, independently of employment law.

Combining employment with a pension is governed by specific rules depending on the scheme and on whether the pension has been drawn at the full rate or not, with direct consequences on the continued payment of the pension.

Social security and tax consequences

Combining activities creates parallel affiliations. An employee who also carries on a self-employed activity contributes to both schemes, with rules for determining coverage for health insurance and for pension purposes. Income is declared under its respective category — salaries and wages on one hand, industrial and commercial profits or non-commercial profits on the other — and is aggregated for the purpose of determining total income.

Two points call for particular attention: health cover falls under the scheme of the main activity according to precise criteria, and crossing certain turnover thresholds in a self-employed activity changes the applicable social security scheme without prior notice.

Usage scenarios

Employee setting up a self-employed activity. Check for the existence of an exclusivity clause, whose temporary unenforceability against company founders applies precisely in this situation. The duty of loyalty, on the other hand, applies without any clause: the activity set up must not compete with the employer.

Combining two part-time jobs. The point to check is compliance with the maximum working hours across all employers combined. An exclusivity clause in a part-time contract is, in principle, without effect.

Employee carrying on another activity from home. The place of performance changes nothing about the rules, including for an employee working remotely. What matters remains the effective separation of working time and compliance with the maximum working hours.

Frequently asked questions

Must you inform your employer? Not in principle, unless a contractual clause provides for it. The employer may, however, request a sworn statement regarding compliance with the maximum working hours, which does not inform it of the nature of the activity.

Is an exclusivity clause always valid? No. It must be essential to protecting the company's legitimate interests, justified by the nature of the task, and proportionate. It is set aside for a given period for company founders and, in practice, for part-time employees.

Can you work for a competitor? No, during the term of the contract: the duty of loyalty prohibits it without any clause being necessary. After termination, only a valid and compensated non-compete clause can prohibit it.

What are the maximum working hours to be observed? Ten hours per day, forty-eight hours in a week, and an average of forty-four hours over twelve weeks, across all employers combined.

Does a self-employed activity count towards these caps? No, it is not counted as salaried working time. However, the duty of loyalty and any applicable exclusivity clause continue to apply.

Can a public official combine activities? The principle is exclusive exercise of duties, with regulated exceptions that are often subject to prior authorisation.

Key takeaways

Combining activities is free in principle. What frames it comes down to three independent levels, to be checked separately: maximum working hours, which apply across all employers combined; the contract's stipulations, distinguishing between the duty of loyalty, which always exists, the exclusivity clause, which is valid only if justified, and the non-compete clause, which only takes effect after termination; and special statuses, which sometimes reverse the principle.

The most common mistake is invoking a non-compete clause to prohibit combining activities during the term of the contract. It serves no purpose there. The only basis usable during the term of the contract is the duty of loyalty, and it requires no clause at all.