I am a bit late to the forums and my comments, my apologies.
The developers have a delicate task of balancing fun and realism. If you have ever grew anything before, its NOT fun, the fun is in the form of the reward. Most people want instant satisfaction or reward. But, fact is, when you plant something it takes a good amount of time to get your reward. So, as for it being a second job, that depends on how big of a farm you want to work. Don't want a second job? have a small farm. I personally know about farming and scaling an operation. So it depends on how the developers want to make the game, fun, realistic or a balance.
Final words. Farming is hard work, and if they go for realistic, they just need to make it rewarding. Personally, I am more of a bandit.. I plan on pillaging your farms and raping your sheep
okay maybe not the sheep. well... maybe