Conflict of Interest

[6566ea13]

Is it considered a conflict of interest here if I will work part-time with another client that would for the same role, same industry or service but different country as my full-time client?

[VladimirG]

Hi Jayanna Lyn,

Thank you for your question. I'd say it depends on the terms you agreed with your clients. I'm sure other freelancers will soon follow up to offer their advice.

In general, working on multiple contracts at the same time is a regular occurrence. Freelancers are free to structure their time according to their preference but if a freelancer agreed to work solely on one contract or if working for one client is an industry-standard thing or part of the terms/NDA/client's expectation, it's best to communicate with the client to avoid potential conflict and come to a mutual understanding. 

[prestonhunter · Accepted solution]

re: "Is it considered a conflict of interest here if I will work part-time with another client that would for the same role, same industry or service but different country as my full-time client?"

"Conflict of interest" is very rarely an issue for freelancers.

Think of Tom Cruise. He starred as "Barry Seal" in the movie "American Made" (2017). He ALSO starred as "Nick Morton" in "The Mummy", which was released IN THE VERY SAME YEAR.

Different client, but same role (actor/star) and same industry.

You don't think of that as a situation with a "conflict of interest" problem. Most freelancing jobs are no more a "conflict of interest" problem than that.

The important thing is that you have the TIME AND ENERGY to serve our clients well.

Upwork itself has NO PROBLEM with what you propose. It is NORMAL. Only in very rare circumstances do freelancers agree to "non-competition" agreements with clients that would pose a "conflict of interest" issue.

[wescowley]

Unless you've made some kind of non-compete or exclusivity agreement with one of the clients, you should be fine as long as you're not using information from one client for another's project. I've only once been asked to sign a non-compete that would have prevented this type of thing, and I walked away from it.