4 ms·

It is hard to compare European salaries to their US counterpart. You have to take account they have much less holidays on average, you have also some sort of "f

by seren 11y ago

It is hard to compare European salaries to their US counterpart. You have to take account they have much less holidays on average, you have also some sort of "free healthcare" that is not tied to your job, a state pension plan, access to some cheap higher level education for your children. In my country, between what is paid by the employer and what I actually get there is a factor of 2 to pay for all the "free" service aforementioned.

refurb 11y ago
I would be careful with that comparison. Many higher-wage US jobs get much more vacation than the minimum 2 weeks, health insurance is paid for by the company (employee only pay ~10% of premium), you get a pension (Social Security) and you're kids can go to a state school with subsidized tuition (albetit, nowhere near as cheap as Europe).
- seren 11y ago
  That is why I mentioned "not tied to your job" which seems, from my very European viewpoint, a bit saner. I heard at least one horror story of an expat who went to work in the US, got a cancer, lost its job, and then had to come back because he was totally uncovered. I don't know the system well enough to determine if it was a total lack of precaution (and luck) on his side, or that was how the system was supposed to work.
- eli_gottlieb 11y ago
  > Many higher-wage US jobs get much more vacation than the minimum 2 weeks [citation needed]. Most high-level American techies I've met get two weeks and take less.
  - bryondowd 11y ago
    Just as anecdotal as yours, but around here, the standard for new hires seems to be 14 days of PTO per year, which gets increased by about a week after a few years of service and again a few years after that. That's with the contractor companies working with the FAA outside Atlantic City, NJ. So, having and using 3-4 weeks isn't too uncommon. Don't know how that compares to elsewhere, but my last non-contractor job closer to Philly had a similar breakdown. Edit: Oh, and it's probably worth noting that starting salary is wayyyy lower than SF, or even other major metro areas. Ballpark $50k. Balanced by the stability, benefits, lower cost of living, and lack of traffic/commute.
    - cableshaft 11y ago
      ...> 2 weeks [after a few years of service at the one job]. Most tech people, especially younger people, have to switch jobs every one or two years, roughly, in order to get a proper compensation boost and career growth, so they never accumulate the years at one company that lead to the 4-5 weeks that some people get. Like at my current job, there's several people here who have been here for 5 years and have 4-5 weeks of PTO accumulated. I've been here for less than a year, so I have 2 weeks, even though I have more career experience than quite a few of the people here. Also, due to some recent changes that screwed with benefits quite a bit, I'm not sure I see myself staying here for much longer than maybe two years max (we'll see, there's a pretty good team, nice boss, and perfect commute, so I'm in no hurry), so I'm probably not going to see any extra PTO out of that either.
      - bryondowd 11y ago
        Interesting. I have heard of that being a problem here as well, with each contract change/new company resetting seniority (even to do the same exact job) and keeping your annual PTO allotment. However, I don't know if my current situation is special, but I'm in the process of negotiating a move to a new company and was able to get them to agree to honor my service with my current company toward PTO seniority. So, it may just be something you need to fight for, that most people don't think to fight for?
  - deleted 11y ago
    [deleted]

by seren 11y ago

refurb 11y ago

I would be careful with that comparison. Many higher-wage US jobs get much more vacation than the minimum 2 weeks, health insurance is paid for by the company (employee only pay ~10% of premium), you get a pension (Social Security) and you're kids can go to a state school with subsidized tuition (albetit, nowhere near as cheap as Europe).

seren 11y ago
That is why I mentioned "not tied to your job" which seems, from my very European viewpoint, a bit saner. I heard at least one horror story of an expat who went to work in the US, got a cancer, lost its job, and then had to come back because he was totally uncovered. I don't know the system well enough to determine if it was a total lack of precaution (and luck) on his side, or that was how the system was supposed to work.
eli_gottlieb 11y ago
> Many higher-wage US jobs get much more vacation than the minimum 2 weeks [citation needed]. Most high-level American techies I've met get two weeks and take less.
- bryondowd 11y ago
  Just as anecdotal as yours, but around here, the standard for new hires seems to be 14 days of PTO per year, which gets increased by about a week after a few years of service and again a few years after that. That's with the contractor companies working with the FAA outside Atlantic City, NJ. So, having and using 3-4 weeks isn't too uncommon. Don't know how that compares to elsewhere, but my last non-contractor job closer to Philly had a similar breakdown. Edit: Oh, and it's probably worth noting that starting salary is wayyyy lower than SF, or even other major metro areas. Ballpark $50k. Balanced by the stability, benefits, lower cost of living, and lack of traffic/commute.
  - cableshaft 11y ago
    ...> 2 weeks [after a few years of service at the one job]. Most tech people, especially younger people, have to switch jobs every one or two years, roughly, in order to get a proper compensation boost and career growth, so they never accumulate the years at one company that lead to the 4-5 weeks that some people get. Like at my current job, there's several people here who have been here for 5 years and have 4-5 weeks of PTO accumulated. I've been here for less than a year, so I have 2 weeks, even though I have more career experience than quite a few of the people here. Also, due to some recent changes that screwed with benefits quite a bit, I'm not sure I see myself staying here for much longer than maybe two years max (we'll see, there's a pretty good team, nice boss, and perfect commute, so I'm in no hurry), so I'm probably not going to see any extra PTO out of that either.
    - bryondowd 11y ago
      Interesting. I have heard of that being a problem here as well, with each contract change/new company resetting seniority (even to do the same exact job) and keeping your annual PTO allotment. However, I don't know if my current situation is special, but I'm in the process of negotiating a move to a new company and was able to get them to agree to honor my service with my current company toward PTO seniority. So, it may just be something you need to fight for, that most people don't think to fight for?
- deleted 11y ago
  [deleted]