Let's hope it increases wages for the rest of us.
As the Pandemic Recedes, Millions of Workers Are Saying 'I Quit'
171–180 of 342 posts
Re: As the Pandemic Recedes, Millions of Workers Are Saying 'I Quit'
#172Earlier quoted context omitted.
I'm quite definitely under 30, and I just quit in order to stay remote. I'm so much more relaxed, and I can spend actual quality time with my wife and friends. I'm not sure why anyone would want to go back.
I'll wager a guess that a lot of those other "under 30" cases were people living with 3 other jerk roommates who used to just come home to sleep but now had to put up with each other for a whole year.
Yeah, if I were single and living in a Big City™, I'd be desperate to be in an office again, too.
Re: As the Pandemic Recedes, Millions of Workers Are Saying 'I Quit'
#173Earlier quoted context omitted.
Most people pay $100+/month for cable, eat out multiple times per week, have thousands of credit card debt, and an unexpected $400 bill would ravage them. If you want to live a un-average life, you need to have un-average priorities and sacrifice. Few on HN should be living paycheck to paycheck. Check out Dave Ramsey's Total Money Makeover for a starting model. And yes, you'll have to sacrifice now to benefit later.
Can speak for myself, I don't live paycheck to paycheck now but I grew up in a household with a lot less money than I make now in comparison - Involved lot of sacrifices and accumulating modest savings over a lifetime to help the next generation to live a bit better and make fewer such sacrifices. > Most people pay $100+/month for cable, eat out multiple times per week, have thousands of credit card debt, and an unex…
> Involved lot of sacrifices and accumulating modest savings over a lifetime to help the next generation to live a bit better and make fewer such sacrifices.
Congrats. That's awesome and it's what we should strive for. Sacrificing sucks but doing it now so we have to do less of it later (or later generations have to do less) is powerful. Your parents setting that example for you - and you passing it down - is exceptionally valuable too. I grew up in similar financial circumstances without learning those lessons until much much later.
> There's also a cohort that might...
Yes, there are cohorts in all circumstances. That's why I said "most" and not "all."
Re: As the Pandemic Recedes, Millions of Workers Are Saying 'I Quit'
#174Earlier quoted context omitted.
The massive outsourcing experiment failure had nothing to do with standard of living or education. It was the combination of timezones and cultural differences. Turns out cultural differences around work, communication, etc between the US and India/China are pretty massive. I seriously doubt that these went away in 2 decades. Also, your argument around standard of living and education would actually be more proof tha…
But India/China are not the only places where you can outsource to. What about France? Minimal cultural differences, and you still get massive savings when it comes to paying salaries.
You absolutely do not save anything by outsourcing from the US to France. And cultural differences are there too. That was probably the worst possible example in the EU :-)
That being said, yes there are other options. Eastern Europe is more and more popular for outsourcing, so is South America. Honestly, I'm maybe dead wrong but when I compare the mentality two decades ago (ie let's minimize cost by any means, who cares who writes the code? it's just code) and today, I truly see an equivalent to the "not invented here" syndrome.
Re: As the Pandemic Recedes, Millions of Workers Are Saying 'I Quit'
#175Earlier quoted context omitted.
I'm more of a PC guy, but yeah, pretty much. For a while. But even that gets boring at some point. Human brains are weird, man.
I really wonder dude, I really wonder. The older I get the harder I find to be excited by shit. I do believe that if I was in the iPhone team I would've been like "another f-ing phone, why should I care?". The paycheck is pretty much all that is getting me out of bed in the morning, even if at this point I can't say I really need it anymore.
I feel the absolute same way. I’ve learned to be satisfied rather than passionate/excited about work. It’s much more sustainable in the long run.
Re: As the Pandemic Recedes, Millions of Workers Are Saying 'I Quit'
#176I quit my job because my company wanted us to go back to the office 3 days a week. Funny thing is, my last day ended up being two days before my fifth anniversary at the old place. Longest job I ever stayed at, and I'd still be there if upper management didn't decide they valued keeping us where we can be monitored and controlled 24/7 over our actual mental health.
I found a new position that pays way more than my old one and is fully remote. I was even told by the recruiter that I could be a digital nomad and travel wherever, bring my company laptop with me, work during the day, and explore whatever city I'm in at night.
Not having to commute during the pandemic has done wonders for my mental health, and I simply can't go back to working in an office. If I couldn't find an all-remote position, I would've just quit my job, broken my lease, moved back in with my mom, and lived like a bum in her spare room.
Funny thing is, my boss actually fought for us. He knew most of us were going to quit if we had to go back, so he fought like hell with upper management and HR to negotiate an exception for the team. The day I got my offer at the new place was the day he told us he got an exception where we'd be allowed to work from home most of the time (except for monthly one-on-ones and biweekly meetings with an internal customer). I still took the offer though (and I've already started the new job), because a) it pays so much more than the old job, b) I have a senior title now, c) fully remote 100% of the time plus being able to be a digital nomad is better than having to go in for certain meetings and not being allowed to leave the metro area, and d) I was told that, at the old company, if any of our performance was found to be insufficient we could be pulled back into the office as a punishment at any time, which just screams "trap" to me.
Re: As the Pandemic Recedes, Millions of Workers Are Saying 'I Quit'
#177I have already began the switch to a mostly remote delivery of my services as a software contractor before Covid hit, and so the pandemic only sealed the deal.
I am not going back.
Most of the teams I have worked with that required on-site presence didn't have the culture I'd be comfortable with anymore: too many meetings, open plan office space with ridiculously cheap and uncomfortable chairs and no standing desks (or only for permanent employees and not us dirty contractors). Most importantly, once COVID hit, it turned out none of that office stuff mattered for productivity anyway.
Europe was lagging behind in terms of remote work but one of the few positives of 'ro was the evening out of the playing field. And, once offices open, whether or not the contracts still offer remote work will be a great filter for potential clients.
I am just not sure that being remote automatically solves the work-life balance problem. I know I am prone to spending the entire day at my computer and it's something I have to work on.
Re: As the Pandemic Recedes, Millions of Workers Are Saying 'I Quit'
#1785 years ago I hit a burnout point and took a year off work. It was a huge perspective shift. I realized that my day-to-day of a rushed commute to work, a stressful and distracting office, thimble-deep coworker relationships and a life completely orientated around doing the above was an insane waste of my short time on Planet Earth. I reoriented my life around family, remote work, flexibility and balance. My quality o…
And also anecdotally, every professional office worker under ~30 I know has been absolutely miserable during this remote work experience, and is yearning to get back to the office - most for a full 5 days a week.
Anecdotally - I'm 30(just), I'm leading a team of people under 30, and everyone is saying that they cannot imagine ever working in the office again. Our company announced they will expect people to come in for at least 2 days a week from September and we're extremely unhhappy about it. If I get an offer for full remote from someone I can't say I won't be tempted.
Re: As the Pandemic Recedes, Millions of Workers Are Saying 'I Quit'
#179I quit my job because my company wanted us to go back to the office 3 days a week. Funny thing is, my last day ended up being two days before my fifth anniversary at the old place. Longest job I ever stayed at, and I'd still be there if upper management didn't decide they valued keeping us where we can be monitored and controlled 24/7 over our actual mental health. I found a new position that pays way more than my ol…
Isn’t it funny how employers want to play these games where they offer you 20% of what you’re asking for when you can go out and get so much more? It’s like they’re daring you to quit. Then they complain they can’t find talent. Same as it ever was.
Re: As the Pandemic Recedes, Millions of Workers Are Saying 'I Quit'
#180Earlier quoted context omitted.
Thank you! Don't have too much pity though, I'm doing okay. I live in the EU, no spouse, no kids, no commitments really. Not planning ahead is 100% my fault, but it's not an existential problem (yet). It's just time to finally stop spending everything as it comes in. It's kind of obnoxious to even admit this, but I always assumed I'd be a successful person at some point down the line. This was of course utterly ridic…
Oh... EU... your 'social safety net' is ... stronger than ours in the US. I am nervous/scared about the future, and I have about 3-4 years of expenses in savings (not counting investments and retirement accounts). But I'm still somewhat 'nervous/scared'.
There is no single EU when it comes to topics like these, some parts are much better than others. But no place will ever save you from really bad financial mistakes or tons of small ones.
But you won't ever starve or have no place to sleep and your health will generally be taken care of, albeit not always in best way possible (ie dental care).