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A regional variation isn't absurd. If someone offered me a job in SF, I'd insist on at least 20% more to try and counter the 50% higher cost of living.
by cmurf 9y ago
A regional variation isn't absurd. If someone offered me a job in SF, I'd insist on at least 20% more to try and counter the 50% higher cost of living.
- sidlls 9y agoIt is absurd. The value of an engineer's work doesn't magically adjust downward because of the circumstance of his or her location. Why aren't you insisting on that 20% bump now instead of leaving it on the table and reinforcing the existing inequity?
- objclxt 9y ago> The value of an engineer's work doesn't magically adjust downward because of the circumstance of his or her location Yes it does! It's only absurd if you assume every person is able, willing, and has no barriers to relocating. But there are plenty of engineers with families and/or established ties who don't want to move. One of the main reasons Facebook, Google, and Apple have engineering offices in Seattle is to attract engineers from Microsoft/Amazon that don't want to uproot their families and move to the bay.
- sidlls 9y agoSure. And they're all selling themselves short.
- rayiner 9y agoThe price of an engineer's labor isn't determined solely by the value of her work. It's a function of supply and demand. Demand is driven, in part, by value. But supply is driven, in part, by cost of living. In other words, if more people were willing to endure San Francisco's cost of living, supply would be higher and prices (salaries) would come down.
- itronitron 9y agosalaries would come down and cost of housing would go up which begs the question... why are people that live and work in SF trying to bring more people in? (maybe because they already own the property)
- sidlls 9y agoI'd prefer that people who don't live in SF stay there and argue for better wages where they live. It's selfish: it would help me, indirectly.