5 ms·

Paying somebody 300k/year doesn't make them "top talent". The top talent is in the US, Taiwan, etc. designing the 3nm plants, operating the 5nm plants, doing r

Paying somebody 300k/year doesn't make them "top talent". The top talent is in the US, Taiwan, etc. designing the 3nm plants, operating the 5nm plants, doing research, etc. Why would a 600k$/year engineer relocate from the US to Germany for a 300k$ salary pay cut ? I've always made more money at my next job than the previous one. If a company wants me to leave my life here behind and move 15000km, they better offer me more, like 700k$ or 800k$. In Germany, that would cost the company 1.6 million $ yearly.

bserge 5y ago
I mean, it's not like it's impossible to assemble a team that can become top talent. But they need the ability to "level up" (by working with already existing high tech). And then they leave for the US anyway heh.
- volta83 5y ago
  This is a bit of a doubled-edged sword for German companies actually. For example, Bosch has a research campus in california to try to achieve this. The problem is, that after being 2 years in the US "becoming top talent", you now have the option of staying there making $$$ or coming back to germany. Even companies like Bosch that invest a lot of money in these types of systems, have huge problems making competitive offers for the people that consider going back.
raverbashing 5y ago
Do you think they're not paying any tax in the US? That 600k gross is at most 500k net (probably less) Also you assume they are a) happy to stay in the US b) have no immigration issues to deal with c) don't have a crazy CoL on SV that eats most of that 500k... Yes, it's not a clear-cut move, but not too bad neither. Salary is not everything.
- stackbutterflow 5y ago
  For reference: 600k USD is 508k euros. 500k USD is 423k euros. We're already down a notch. People tend to assume $1 = 1€ in this thread.
- volta83 5y ago
  When you are making 600k$ a big part of your compensation is stocks. There are lots of ways to pay fewer taxes in the US when holding stocks. Plus you have 401k, backdoor Roth, etc. retirement saving plans that are non-existent in Germany.
  - GoOnThenDoTell 5y ago
    Backdoor Roth?
    - mercutio2 5y ago
      It’s a thing. Mega backdoor Roth is an even bigger thing: https://www.bogleheads.org/wiki/Mega-backdoor_Roth https://www.bogleheads.org/wiki/Mega-backdoor_Roth

bserge 5y ago

I mean, it's not like it's impossible to assemble a team that can become top talent. But they need the ability to "level up" (by working with already existing high tech). And then they leave for the US anyway heh.

volta83 5y ago
This is a bit of a doubled-edged sword for German companies actually. For example, Bosch has a research campus in california to try to achieve this. The problem is, that after being 2 years in the US "becoming top talent", you now have the option of staying there making $$$ or coming back to germany. Even companies like Bosch that invest a lot of money in these types of systems, have huge problems making competitive offers for the people that consider going back.

raverbashing 5y ago

Do you think they're not paying any tax in the US? That 600k gross is at most 500k net (probably less) Also you assume they are a) happy to stay in the US b) have no immigration issues to deal with c) don't have a crazy CoL on SV that eats most of that 500k... Yes, it's not a clear-cut move, but not too bad neither. Salary is not everything.

stackbutterflow 5y ago
For reference: 600k USD is 508k euros. 500k USD is 423k euros. We're already down a notch. People tend to assume $1 = 1€ in this thread.
volta83 5y ago
When you are making 600k$ a big part of your compensation is stocks. There are lots of ways to pay fewer taxes in the US when holding stocks. Plus you have 401k, backdoor Roth, etc. retirement saving plans that are non-existent in Germany.
- GoOnThenDoTell 5y ago
  Backdoor Roth?
  - mercutio2 5y ago
    It’s a thing. Mega backdoor Roth is an even bigger thing: https://www.bogleheads.org/wiki/Mega-backdoor_Roth https://www.bogleheads.org/wiki/Mega-backdoor_Roth