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I asked a millennial why she cared so much about the free coffee, and she told me that it symbolizes the employer's 'caring' about the staff.. Personally, I'd

I asked a millennial why she cared so much about the free coffee, and she told me that it symbolizes the employer's 'caring' about the staff.. Personally, I'd rather earn an extra $25k and buy a few cups of coffee with it than get "free coffee".

badfrog 7y ago
> Personally, I'd rather earn an extra $25k and buy a few cups of coffee with it than get "free coffee". I don't think there are any companies that spend $25k per employee per year on coffee???
Apocryphon 7y ago
That is a dilemma that not a single worker in the history of this species has ever had to grapple with.
jjeaff 7y ago
Coffee is so bargain basement cheap when bought and prepared in bulk too.
Junk_Collector 7y ago
Simple perks like free coffee are a canary for the corporate coal mine. When you look at the cost of coffee or soda, providing it free may cost the company in the ballpark of $500 a year per employee (though often less) which is minuscule in the total annual cost of an employee. Taken in a vacuum however, the number looks big. We spent how much on Coffee last quarter! When companies get to the mostly investor owned squeezing for growth stage, it's almost always among the first thing that gets cut. This is then usually followed by other more important quality of life cuts like training, equipment, and bonuses. Many companies hit this stage and start increasing margins by letting inflation eat their employee's high salaries over time for instance.
- neekburm 7y ago
  It reminds me of this: https://steveblank.com/2009/12/21/the-elves-leave-middle-earth-%E2%80%93-soda%E2%80%99s-are-no-longer-free/ https://steveblank.com/2009/12/21/the-elves-leave-middle-ear...
lacker 7y ago
For coffee especially it’s a big waste of time for me to leave the premises to go buy some coffee every time I want coffee. Even in the crappiest workplaces I have worked in - like the torn-up remnants of a Charles Schwab office that they had vacated, without removing all the trash, and some dubious middleman re-rented single rooms to startups - the inhabitants would informally band together to provide free coffee.
refurb 7y ago
Yup, my employer would often host big celebrations throughout the year. I’d much rather have a $500 bonus for each one of them (or whatever it cost them). Paying for perks is a great way to avoid paying a higher salary.
asdfasgasdgasdg 7y ago
> Personally, I'd rather earn an extra $25k and buy a few cups of coffee with it than get "free coffee". That deal is not on the table, though. For practical purposes, there are few places that someone can work that pay better than Google for a given dev, and those places all probably have free coffee as well.

badfrog 7y ago

> Personally, I'd rather earn an extra $25k and buy a few cups of coffee with it than get "free coffee". I don't think there are any companies that spend $25k per employee per year on coffee???

Apocryphon 7y ago

That is a dilemma that not a single worker in the history of this species has ever had to grapple with.

jjeaff 7y ago

Coffee is so bargain basement cheap when bought and prepared in bulk too.

Junk_Collector 7y ago

Simple perks like free coffee are a canary for the corporate coal mine. When you look at the cost of coffee or soda, providing it free may cost the company in the ballpark of $500 a year per employee (though often less) which is minuscule in the total annual cost of an employee. Taken in a vacuum however, the number looks big. We spent how much on Coffee last quarter! When companies get to the mostly investor owned squeezing for growth stage, it's almost always among the first thing that gets cut. This is then usually followed by other more important quality of life cuts like training, equipment, and bonuses. Many companies hit this stage and start increasing margins by letting inflation eat their employee's high salaries over time for instance.

neekburm 7y ago
It reminds me of this: https://steveblank.com/2009/12/21/the-elves-leave-middle-earth-%E2%80%93-soda%E2%80%99s-are-no-longer-free/ https://steveblank.com/2009/12/21/the-elves-leave-middle-ear...

lacker 7y ago

For coffee especially it’s a big waste of time for me to leave the premises to go buy some coffee every time I want coffee. Even in the crappiest workplaces I have worked in - like the torn-up remnants of a Charles Schwab office that they had vacated, without removing all the trash, and some dubious middleman re-rented single rooms to startups - the inhabitants would informally band together to provide free coffee.

refurb 7y ago

Yup, my employer would often host big celebrations throughout the year. I’d much rather have a $500 bonus for each one of them (or whatever it cost them). Paying for perks is a great way to avoid paying a higher salary.

asdfasgasdgasdg 7y ago

> Personally, I'd rather earn an extra $25k and buy a few cups of coffee with it than get "free coffee". That deal is not on the table, though. For practical purposes, there are few places that someone can work that pay better than Google for a given dev, and those places all probably have free coffee as well.