The Hustle Is Real

Thirty-six percent of Americans say they have to work two jobs to make ends meet

- JOSHUA RHETT MILLER

MILLIONS OF AMERICANS ARE working for the weekend-the one that never comes.

Matthew Kallish, 45, of Oak Ridge, New Jersey, labors up to 50 hours weekly as a U.S. Postal Service rural carrier associate, starting shifts at 7.30 a.m. that last until his route gets fully served, sometimes as many as six days each week.

The married father also works a second job as a night auditor at a hotel in Parsippany on weeknights from 11 p.m. to 7 a.m., leaving Kallish little time to enjoy the fruits of his exertion.

"It's been tough for sure," Kallish told Newsweek of the grueling schedule he's endured for more than 2 1/2 years. "Working the two jobs has definitely impacted my family in many ways."

Kallish's grit helps afford his family occasional luxuries, but the devoted dad primarily needs to rest whenever he does get home, leaving chores and other responsibilities for his sons, Shaun, 16, and Michael, 10, as well as wife Tania, 43, who also works full time in real estate.

"It has been a rough couple of years with two jobs," he said. "My sleep schedule is all over the place, and I am lucky if I get three to four decent hours of sleep a night." Personal debt and high living costs led Kallish to find another gig. He's among 36 percent of Americans who rely on second jobs or side hustles to get by according to a new survey.

Roughly one-third of respondents also believe they'll always need second gigs to keep themselves financially afloat. Kallish foresees a few more years in his current schedule but hopes to cut back his hours at the hotel once becoming a full-time USPS mail carrier.