The number of employees who run their own companies or take on second jobs in their spare time is growing very quickly. While some employers encourage this trend, many are concerned that it can harm their businesses. A company’s management might worry that their employees may start companies that will compete with their employer or that can take away time from what they are paid to do at work.

If you are considering any sort of side job, whether starting your own company or working a second job, you may want to take note of the following suggestions, in order to avoid any issues with your primary employer.

Make sure that you have not signed any sort of contract that would limit your ability to work outside of your primary employer. The most common contract that could affect your ability to do so is a non-compete contract, which states that, within certain geographical and chronological constraints, you are not allowed to work for (or start) a business that competes with your current employer. However, some employers are asking employees to sign more strenuous contracts, which limit their ability to work beyond their employer.

Do not allow your secondary job to invade your main work. If you are paid as an employee of one company, it is unethical to be doing the work of another — even if you own that other company. Don’t take phone calls for your other job, don’t read email for it, and don’t do work for it. If an emergency comes up, you may choose to take personal time to deal with it, but don’t make it into a habit.

Avoid networking for your ‘other’ job when you should be working on a project for your primary position. While you may have the temptation to speak up and say that your other company might be perfect for something, you should resist it. At the very least, you should keep a low profile on your multi-employment status.

Eliminate your second job if the workload becomes too much. Assuming that your primary job is the more important of the two, if you find yourself unable to meet the requirements of both, eliminate one. Depending on the reason you took on the second commitment, it may not seem like an option. If, for instance, you need the second income in order to meet your obligations, you may want to consider other options for higher income, such as asking for a raise, or finding a new job entirely.

Many individuals transition from employee to entrepreneur or from job to job with some sort of overlap. It can be difficult to balance such a workload, and it takes effort to keep such a situation from becoming a problem. You will need to prioritize to succeed, and even then, if you do not prioritize your primary employer, you may run into trouble.

In the workplace, there is a huge potential for discrimination, on any number of grounds. The potential for discrimination during the hiring process is even larger and harder to counter. If you believe that you have been discriminated against, there are a number of steps you can take to deal with the discrimination.

If you can document the discrimination, or have tangible proof, you will be better equipped to handle the matter. Even a simple question at your interview can be enough to show that a hiring manager was biased against you for a specific reason. Written proof is often the most effective, but the most difficult to come by.

Your first step in disputing discrimination should be to talk to the employer in question. If a single hiring manager was the cause of the problem, try talking to a higher level of management, or even approaching the owner or president of the company. You may be able to get a review of your complaint very easily.

In some companies, however, you may find that discrimination is part of the company’s culture. You may need to take further steps to ensure that your problem is addressed, such as contacting an attorney. Some lawyers specialize in discrimination cases, and, if you can work with one, they may be able to suggest the best course of action against a given company.

It may also be worthwhile to check if other applicants, or even employees, have had similar experiences with the company in question. If there are multiple complaints, especially if a case goes before a judge, you will have a better chance of proving your accusation. An attorney can give you direction in proceeding with a case with multiple complaints.

Keep in mind that you may face discrimination for a wide variety of characteristics. Some of the best known are racial, sexual and religious discrimination, but ageism is rapidly becoming a key discrimination issue, as is sexual orientation. Additionally, a whole host of actions on the part of an employer could be considered discrimination (although many categories are very difficult to prove): firing, refusal to promote, etc.