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I had lunch recently with a VP of human resources who worked for one of the largest tech employers here in Seattle (that is known for routinely working people 5

I had lunch recently with a VP of human resources who worked for one of the largest tech employers here in Seattle (that is known for routinely working people 50 to 60+ hours a week) why they didn't provide more vacation and greater worklife balance. She replied that the young tech talent that they recruit doesn't demand it they only look at the top line salary and don't calculate the amount that they are earning per hour.

analog31 10y ago
This may be a rational strategy. How much they're earning per hour only matters economically if they're paid by the hour, or have a chance to earn money in a second job, side business, etc. Meanwhile, their top line salary is a starting point for calculating the bottom line, which is how quickly they can build up their own financial safety net for contingencies such as getting laid off, old, sick, raising kids, etc. Or, for starting their own business. Granted, I'm probably guilty as charged. I keep tabs on my total wealth, as I inch towards retirement and my kids race towards college. Also, I haven't gone to the extreme of working 80 hours per week, as I've managed to maintain my career progress while guarding my work hours and living in a fairly pleasant -- dare I say more European-like -- city. I also have a second job and a side business. Perhaps in Europe, having a mandatory safety net (health care, etc.) means that workers don't have to be as aggressive about building their own safety net, and tend to negotiate differently.
caminante 10y ago
She replied that the young tech talent that they recruit doesn't demand it they only look at the top line salary and don't calculate the amount that they are earning per hour. The explanation doesn't make sense. 1. At the "large tech employers," the young talent couldn't demand it as they have limited power. There's plenty of substitutes at the margins. Both parties know this. 2. Employees surely calculate $/hour. It's cute to derive a minimum wage salary when you spread wages across more hours, but earnings/career comparison stops there.
- aidenn0 10y ago
  At the "large tech employers" the young talent largely drives the compensation structure. To be large you need to hire a lot of people. If you want to hire a lot of people, then the easiest way is to attract new graduates (the only two times there is a large pool of talented engineers is at graduation time and when a large company shuts down). Microsoft, Google, Amazon, Facebook (and probably others) are competing for that same pool, and if they could increase their acceptance rate of offers by 10% by offering better work-life balance they would do it in a heartbeat. In my experience, the two main things that 22 year old tech graduates are looking for are money and future career potential. I doubt more than a few percent of the young interviewees at those companies even ask about vacation time. I have a fairly small data-set, but not one of several dozen right-out-of-college interviewees have asked me about how many hours they would be expected to work.
flukus 10y ago
Do they job ads state that they will be expected to work 50 to 60+ hours a week?

analog31 10y ago

This may be a rational strategy. How much they're earning per hour only matters economically if they're paid by the hour, or have a chance to earn money in a second job, side business, etc. Meanwhile, their top line salary is a starting point for calculating the bottom line, which is how quickly they can build up their own financial safety net for contingencies such as getting laid off, old, sick, raising kids, etc. Or, for starting their own business. Granted, I'm probably guilty as charged. I keep tabs on my total wealth, as I inch towards retirement and my kids race towards college. Also, I haven't gone to the extreme of working 80 hours per week, as I've managed to maintain my career progress while guarding my work hours and living in a fairly pleasant -- dare I say more European-like -- city. I also have a second job and a side business. Perhaps in Europe, having a mandatory safety net (health care, etc.) means that workers don't have to be as aggressive about building their own safety net, and tend to negotiate differently.

caminante 10y ago

She replied that the young tech talent that they recruit doesn't demand it they only look at the top line salary and don't calculate the amount that they are earning per hour. The explanation doesn't make sense. 1. At the "large tech employers," the young talent couldn't demand it as they have limited power. There's plenty of substitutes at the margins. Both parties know this. 2. Employees surely calculate $/hour. It's cute to derive a minimum wage salary when you spread wages across more hours, but earnings/career comparison stops there.

aidenn0 10y ago
At the "large tech employers" the young talent largely drives the compensation structure. To be large you need to hire a lot of people. If you want to hire a lot of people, then the easiest way is to attract new graduates (the only two times there is a large pool of talented engineers is at graduation time and when a large company shuts down). Microsoft, Google, Amazon, Facebook (and probably others) are competing for that same pool, and if they could increase their acceptance rate of offers by 10% by offering better work-life balance they would do it in a heartbeat. In my experience, the two main things that 22 year old tech graduates are looking for are money and future career potential. I doubt more than a few percent of the young interviewees at those companies even ask about vacation time. I have a fairly small data-set, but not one of several dozen right-out-of-college interviewees have asked me about how many hours they would be expected to work.

flukus 10y ago

Do they job ads state that they will be expected to work 50 to 60+ hours a week?