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Salary based on your locale even though everyone is remote: hilarious. "Oh you live in Alabama you get 60k" "Oh you live in Manhattan on 65th street that is 15

Salary based on your locale even though everyone is remote: hilarious. "Oh you live in Alabama you get 60k" "Oh you live in Manhattan on 65th street that is 150k". This will backfire into a political hell.

three_seagrass 6y ago
It's likely there will be a mean remote salary, to remain competitive - i.e. $110K remote and $150k on-site in SF.
MattGaiser 6y ago
If everyone is remote, the salary will just generally be low, period.
- TulliusCicero 6y ago
  Right, that's one strategy, but then that means you lose out on strong engineers living in expensive areas. And since the major tech hubs are mostly very expensive, that means you're missing out on a lot of potential candidates.
twblalock 6y ago
What you described is already the case at most large companies, and it has not backfired, so I don't know what you are talking about.
usefulcat 6y ago
It certainly could, depending on how it's done, but consider the possibility that part of the motivation for allowing people to work remotely is to save on salaries, which are probably by far the biggest expense for a typical tech company.
smnrchrds 6y ago
Gitlab famously does this, is very open about it [0], and in general has enjoyed more praise for their all remote structure than hell for their differing salaries. Maybe the companies won't rush to cut salaries of current employees who go remote and move elsewhere. But I fully expect them to offer new hires different salaries based on their location. After all, they already do that with their non-remote offices. It's not like Google is paying the same salaries to workers in their SF office and Toronto office. [0] https://about.gitlab.com/handbook/total-rewards/compensation/compensation-calculator/calculator/ https://about.gitlab.com/handbook/total-rewards/compensation...
- city41 6y ago
  Their SF salaries that anchor this tool seem pretty low. It states $160k for a senior/staff level backend engineer and $185k for frontend.
  - true_religion 6y ago
    I would agree. Senior level developers in Virginia, can get 200k as a minimum. The only downside I have found is that companies with high salaries either have more difficult work, or poor work life balance.
- eyelidlessness 6y ago
  I suspect one of the reasons there's not much complaint is that their base pay appears to be pretty high. A senior engineer who lives in South Dakota (either by preference or some life circumstance) is not likely to be too upset about a $100-140k salary.
gremlinsinc 6y ago
Get a forwarding mail box from Manhattan and tell your company that's where you live. I mean seriously if the company's gonna dick around w/ salaries like that. I mean other than mailing tax documents is it really their business where you live?
- twblalock 6y ago
  > Get a forwarding mail box from Manhattan and tell your company that's where you live. Lying to your company about things like that is a great way to get fired. Everyone should ignore this terrible advice.
  - smnrchrds 6y ago
    It may also be illegal. Don't companies have to deduct and remit income taxes to the state of worker's residence?
  - lliamander 6y ago
    Also, it might screw with your tax withholdings etc.
  - asdff 6y ago
    So don't lie, actually have some property. Sublet an apartment with a dozen of your friends for $200/month. Make it back on airbnb. Most companies don't care if you have multiple properties in several states, they'd have to fire all their executives if they did.
- sigfubar 6y ago
  You'll end up paying New York income tax too, which is quite hefty.
  - kube-system 6y ago
    And you'll not be paying your real local income tax, which is quite illegal.
bhupy 6y ago
We already do salary based on your locale... If you are a software engineer and you show up to work in an office in Alabama, you already make less than the same software engineer showing up to work in an office in Manhattan. The only difference here is that you don't show up to work in an office, you show up to work in your pajamas and the office is at home.
deleted 6y ago
[deleted]
marcosdumay 6y ago
If you are up-front with this, it's just a salary offer that people will take or not depending on how good it is. No problem. Companies can do this because so few of them hire remote. If it gets normalized, the practice will not be sustainable.
deleted 6y ago
[deleted]
kube-system 6y ago
Companies with offices in multiple regions have done COL adjustments for many decades without any issues.

three_seagrass 6y ago

It's likely there will be a mean remote salary, to remain competitive - i.e. $110K remote and $150k on-site in SF.

MattGaiser 6y ago

If everyone is remote, the salary will just generally be low, period.

TulliusCicero 6y ago
Right, that's one strategy, but then that means you lose out on strong engineers living in expensive areas. And since the major tech hubs are mostly very expensive, that means you're missing out on a lot of potential candidates.

twblalock 6y ago

What you described is already the case at most large companies, and it has not backfired, so I don't know what you are talking about.

usefulcat 6y ago

It certainly could, depending on how it's done, but consider the possibility that part of the motivation for allowing people to work remotely is to save on salaries, which are probably by far the biggest expense for a typical tech company.

smnrchrds 6y ago

Gitlab famously does this, is very open about it [0], and in general has enjoyed more praise for their all remote structure than hell for their differing salaries. Maybe the companies won't rush to cut salaries of current employees who go remote and move elsewhere. But I fully expect them to offer new hires different salaries based on their location. After all, they already do that with their non-remote offices. It's not like Google is paying the same salaries to workers in their SF office and Toronto office. [0] https://about.gitlab.com/handbook/total-rewards/compensation/compensation-calculator/calculator/ https://about.gitlab.com/handbook/total-rewards/compensation...

city41 6y ago
Their SF salaries that anchor this tool seem pretty low. It states $160k for a senior/staff level backend engineer and $185k for frontend.
- true_religion 6y ago
  I would agree. Senior level developers in Virginia, can get 200k as a minimum. The only downside I have found is that companies with high salaries either have more difficult work, or poor work life balance.
eyelidlessness 6y ago
I suspect one of the reasons there's not much complaint is that their base pay appears to be pretty high. A senior engineer who lives in South Dakota (either by preference or some life circumstance) is not likely to be too upset about a $100-140k salary.

gremlinsinc 6y ago

Get a forwarding mail box from Manhattan and tell your company that's where you live. I mean seriously if the company's gonna dick around w/ salaries like that. I mean other than mailing tax documents is it really their business where you live?

twblalock 6y ago
> Get a forwarding mail box from Manhattan and tell your company that's where you live. Lying to your company about things like that is a great way to get fired. Everyone should ignore this terrible advice.
- smnrchrds 6y ago
  It may also be illegal. Don't companies have to deduct and remit income taxes to the state of worker's residence?
- lliamander 6y ago
  Also, it might screw with your tax withholdings etc.
- asdff 6y ago
  So don't lie, actually have some property. Sublet an apartment with a dozen of your friends for $200/month. Make it back on airbnb. Most companies don't care if you have multiple properties in several states, they'd have to fire all their executives if they did.
sigfubar 6y ago
You'll end up paying New York income tax too, which is quite hefty.
- kube-system 6y ago
  And you'll not be paying your real local income tax, which is quite illegal.

bhupy 6y ago

We already do salary based on your locale... If you are a software engineer and you show up to work in an office in Alabama, you already make less than the same software engineer showing up to work in an office in Manhattan. The only difference here is that you don't show up to work in an office, you show up to work in your pajamas and the office is at home.

deleted 6y ago

[deleted]

marcosdumay 6y ago

If you are up-front with this, it's just a salary offer that people will take or not depending on how good it is. No problem. Companies can do this because so few of them hire remote. If it gets normalized, the practice will not be sustainable.

deleted 6y ago

[deleted]

kube-system 6y ago

Companies with offices in multiple regions have done COL adjustments for many decades without any issues.