6 ms·

Funnily enough paying their employees somewhat competitive market rate still isn’t on there.

HHalvi 7y ago
This still puzzles me since most other remote companies of similar size and shapes offer much better compensation than Gitlab.
- sunaurus 7y ago
  Which companies do you mean specifically?
- jjeaff 7y ago
  I can't speak for gitlab, but there is a strategy to not competing with higher salaries, even if you can afford it in some cases. You aren't necessarily losing the top talent because not all the top talent cares only about the money. And by not offering the highest salaries, you are naturally selecting for employees that care more about the culture and work/life balance than having the highest possible salaries. So if you do hiring right, you are more likely to get employees that stick around rather than jump ship for the first offer of a 10% pay raise.
  - sonnyblarney 7y ago
    "you are naturally selecting for employees that care more about the culture and work/life balance than having the highest possible salaries" This is not quite true. You're 'selecting' for all of the things that come along with offering lower salaries, which usually means losing the best talent. All things being equal, it's rational for even a 'good staffer' to go to Google (or whatever). And of course, the company saves money by paying people less. I'm doubtful that there's any correlation between 'lower pay and commitment' once you normalize for talent. If this is true, they could equally pay people more and get the same or better results. Corporations speak in their self interest, and other people's interests to the extent it serves their own. If a company is paying less, it's probably because they can get away with it for one reason or another.
    - techntoke 7y ago
      Not true at all. Money isn't everything. Culture and value mean a huge amount to me as an employee. I'd take 60k less a year or more based on culture and value.
      - autotune 7y ago
        The last time I worked at a company where “money isn’t everything” with a focus on culture instead it was because they ended up getting bought out by a private firm where most eventually got laid off. Money talks, bullshit walks first and foremost while culture is what ensures those with competitive skill set and high salaries don’t jump ship for 10 percent more, but you still have to pay your employees well. You can’t pay your bills or afford your hobbies outside work with culture.
sytse 7y ago
What rate do you think is off? For example our rate for an intermediate developer in San Francisco is $160k a year and options. See https://about.gitlab.com/job-families/engineering/backend-engineer/ https://about.gitlab.com/job-families/engineering/backend-en... If you mean we pay local rates please see https://about.gitlab.com/2019/02/28/why-we-pay-local-rates/ https://about.gitlab.com/2019/02/28/why-we-pay-local-rates/
- ergocoder 7y ago
  As a person from a third world country, I don't think paying local rates makes sense for an employee. I worked in both Vietnam and Bay Area. The salary difference is ~10x. In Bay Area, I easily save $100K or more per year (earning >~$300K a year). Even earning a top local rates in Vietnam would have a hard time accumulating $100K in savings. I could go back to Vietnam now and earn like $5K USD a month top. Living in a country with lower cost of living often means lower quality of school, safety, health, and etc. If I work remotely for gitlab, I'd immediately move to Bay Area or maybe Seattle to increase my savings. But, well, it saves gitlab money. So, it makes sense for Gitlab to make this decision. It's not good for employees though.
  - planetburgess 7y ago
    Is working for Gitlab remotely in Vietnam on a localised salary as good or better than most local job opportunities? If so, isn't it still good for the employees?
    - ergocoder 7y ago
      > Is working for Gitlab remotely in Vietnam on a localised salary as good or better than most local job opportunities? I think Gitlab aims to pay top rates on the local market if I'm not wrong. What I'm saying is that, even with the top rate in Vietnam, it's still small compared to being an average engineer in Bay Area in terms of saving performance.
  - 1123581321 7y ago
    Your situation sounds different than that of GitLab employees. GitLab would pay you $190-200k in SF and $90-100k in Vietnam.

This still puzzles me since most other remote companies of similar size and shapes offer much better compensation than Gitlab.

sunaurus 7y ago
Which companies do you mean specifically?
jjeaff 7y ago
I can't speak for gitlab, but there is a strategy to not competing with higher salaries, even if you can afford it in some cases. You aren't necessarily losing the top talent because not all the top talent cares only about the money. And by not offering the highest salaries, you are naturally selecting for employees that care more about the culture and work/life balance than having the highest possible salaries. So if you do hiring right, you are more likely to get employees that stick around rather than jump ship for the first offer of a 10% pay raise.
- sonnyblarney 7y ago
  "you are naturally selecting for employees that care more about the culture and work/life balance than having the highest possible salaries" This is not quite true. You're 'selecting' for all of the things that come along with offering lower salaries, which usually means losing the best talent. All things being equal, it's rational for even a 'good staffer' to go to Google (or whatever). And of course, the company saves money by paying people less. I'm doubtful that there's any correlation between 'lower pay and commitment' once you normalize for talent. If this is true, they could equally pay people more and get the same or better results. Corporations speak in their self interest, and other people's interests to the extent it serves their own. If a company is paying less, it's probably because they can get away with it for one reason or another.
  - techntoke 7y ago
    Not true at all. Money isn't everything. Culture and value mean a huge amount to me as an employee. I'd take 60k less a year or more based on culture and value.
    - autotune 7y ago
      The last time I worked at a company where “money isn’t everything” with a focus on culture instead it was because they ended up getting bought out by a private firm where most eventually got laid off. Money talks, bullshit walks first and foremost while culture is what ensures those with competitive skill set and high salaries don’t jump ship for 10 percent more, but you still have to pay your employees well. You can’t pay your bills or afford your hobbies outside work with culture.

sytse 7y ago

What rate do you think is off? For example our rate for an intermediate developer in San Francisco is $160k a year and options. See https://about.gitlab.com/job-families/engineering/backend-engineer/ https://about.gitlab.com/job-families/engineering/backend-en... If you mean we pay local rates please see https://about.gitlab.com/2019/02/28/why-we-pay-local-rates/ https://about.gitlab.com/2019/02/28/why-we-pay-local-rates/

ergocoder 7y ago
As a person from a third world country, I don't think paying local rates makes sense for an employee. I worked in both Vietnam and Bay Area. The salary difference is ~10x. In Bay Area, I easily save $100K or more per year (earning >~$300K a year). Even earning a top local rates in Vietnam would have a hard time accumulating $100K in savings. I could go back to Vietnam now and earn like $5K USD a month top. Living in a country with lower cost of living often means lower quality of school, safety, health, and etc. If I work remotely for gitlab, I'd immediately move to Bay Area or maybe Seattle to increase my savings. But, well, it saves gitlab money. So, it makes sense for Gitlab to make this decision. It's not good for employees though.
- planetburgess 7y ago
  Is working for Gitlab remotely in Vietnam on a localised salary as good or better than most local job opportunities? If so, isn't it still good for the employees?
  - ergocoder 7y ago
    > Is working for Gitlab remotely in Vietnam on a localised salary as good or better than most local job opportunities? I think Gitlab aims to pay top rates on the local market if I'm not wrong. What I'm saying is that, even with the top rate in Vietnam, it's still small compared to being an average engineer in Bay Area in terms of saving performance.
- 1123581321 7y ago
  Your situation sounds different than that of GitLab employees. GitLab would pay you $190-200k in SF and $90-100k in Vietnam.