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70% of startups offer remote work options as hiring heats up, YC data shows

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Re: 70% of startups offer remote work options as hiring heats up, YC data shows

#31
post #23
post #13

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Myself and many people I know can't stand permanent WFH and specifically seek jobs with offices.

That’s probably because the jobs you’re thinking of offer incredible offices. How would you feel if the office was just cheap fluorescent lighting lit cubicles in some shitty part of town? Maybe a cat poster for some motivation.

Yeah, I suspect this is where a lot of the 'debate' is coming from. My experience is that Google/FB/etc... have (a slight) majority preferring WFO for at least 3 days, and other companies are overwhelmingly WFH.

Re: 70% of startups offer remote work options as hiring heats up, YC data shows

#32
post #14

Be interesting to know for the "remotes" how remote is remote. Some are localish remotes, some are world wide remotes, and some somewhere in-between. One of the problems seems to be ( and I'm sure some start up will try to solve this) is employing people worldwide has a lot of legal issues with regards to local employment laws and payment issues.

I think a common solution to this is that if you want to be a remote worker with a worldwide employment pool, you need to set-up an entity from under which to invoice, whether that would be freelancing or having an LLC, and then you take care of your taxes, healthcare, and so on yourself. At least this is how I know everyone (myself included) do it. It's not really complicated, you just need to hire an accountant, an…

This. I've billed, from Belgium, clients in both the US and Switzerland. Had zero problem receiving payments.

Re: 70% of startups offer remote work options as hiring heats up, YC data shows

#33
post #15

I wonder if this will last after the pandemic is over. If if ever ends.

One of the side effects of the pandemic is that there is now a global remote-first tech workforce. Working remotely is a skill that companies might not have wanted to gamble on their people learning, but now everyone has this skill. There's momentum in this direction now and changing it would actually require increased costs for many companies - more office space, fewer employees in low-cost areas, etc.

I like remote work and all, but to be completely honest, I'm not sure we've figured it out yet. All that we've gotten is forced equality; we aren't bringing in remote workers as second class citizens relative to the people that work in the office. That's a good start, and probably a necessary step on the way towards a "tipping point". But people don't have the same rapport that they do in person, decisions are tedious and contentious, and knowledge sharing is harder. We still have much to figure out, and it will be easy for someone to say "figuring it out isn't for us".

Re: 70% of startups offer remote work options as hiring heats up, YC data shows

#34
post #6

I wonder if this will last after the pandemic is over. If if ever ends.

Access to the global talent pool and no costs on offices? Sounds pretty good to me!

> Access to the global talent pool

Great for companies. Great for non-Americans. Not so great for Americans earning high wages.

This is what happened to our manufacturing sector, and it's absolutely gunning for our knowledge work. It's inevitable.

Re: 70% of startups offer remote work options as hiring heats up, YC data shows

#35
Even if this number slides to 50% in a few years, we've accelerated what would have probably taken 20 years or more of transition in to just a few years. The impact on every city and region outside the historical major growth centres will be huge.

We are just in the opening phases of that change. A big %# isn't the only indicator of change, it's the amount relative to pre-pandemic.

Re: 70% of startups offer remote work options as hiring heats up, YC data shows

#36
post #14

Be interesting to know for the "remotes" how remote is remote. Some are localish remotes, some are world wide remotes, and some somewhere in-between. One of the problems seems to be ( and I'm sure some start up will try to solve this) is employing people worldwide has a lot of legal issues with regards to local employment laws and payment issues.

I think a common solution to this is that if you want to be a remote worker with a worldwide employment pool, you need to set-up an entity from under which to invoice, whether that would be freelancing or having an LLC, and then you take care of your taxes, healthcare, and so on yourself. At least this is how I know everyone (myself included) do it. It's not really complicated, you just need to hire an accountant, an…

The more common this becomes the more likely people in the US (where most people are trying to work) take notice and enforce existing labor laws, and push for more regulation.

I’ve worked with people doing this in the past and they almost certainly are contractors in name only. That is they are essentially full time employees operating as contractors to skirt legal issues.

Re: 70% of startups offer remote work options as hiring heats up, YC data shows

#37
post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

- Live and move anywhere. - Set your own hours. - Four day work weeks. - Part time roles. - Work for both FANGMA and a startup [1] - Sabbaticals. [1] (Startup could be flexible so there's no overlap in meetings/oncall. Also makes it super easy to switch jobs while still getting paid from one of the two roles.)

I just realized how spoiled us dev folk are. If only my grandmother would know the cushy life I get to live while still complaining about it she would slap me.

A good grandma would be overjoyed that her descendants had progressed to the point where these were their chief complaints.

Absolutely incredible.

Re: 70% of startups offer remote work options as hiring heats up, YC data shows

#38
Remote is such an overloaded term. Is it US/North America only? Is it equal work for equal pay globally?

I was someone who took the opportunity to relocate back to my home country when Covid struck, but had to take a near 50% pay cut to do so, despite doing the same work. I'm surprised this hasn't become more of a hot button issue within the community.

Re: 70% of startups offer remote work options as hiring heats up, YC data shows

#39
post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

- Live and move anywhere. - Set your own hours. - Four day work weeks. - Part time roles. - Work for both FANGMA and a startup [1] - Sabbaticals. [1] (Startup could be flexible so there's no overlap in meetings/oncall. Also makes it super easy to switch jobs while still getting paid from one of the two roles.)

I just realized how spoiled us dev folk are. If only my grandmother would know the cushy life I get to live while still complaining about it she would slap me.

I still wonder why I peruse HN for this reason (as a non-SWE). It's incredible how the business world panders to software engineers.

Re: 70% of startups offer remote work options as hiring heats up, YC data shows

#40
I honestly don't understand how any startup can even hope to compete if they don't offer remote options.

Hiring is incredibly tight right now, and I'm sure glad my options are "anybody within ~2 timezones" over basically only people within a 15 mile radius of my office because traffic is horrendous in my city.

Not to mention, how have companies not realized how to build robust remote company cultures over the past 2 years? My city currently has the highest hospitalization rates of any time during the pandemic, so hardly anyone is in the office anyway.

Just don't understand how any of these startup board members or VCs would be willing to invest in companies at this point that prohibit remote work.

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