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Startups Are Scooping Up Big Tech’s Cast-Off Workers

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Re: Startups Are Scooping Up Big Tech’s Cast-Off Workers

#221

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Talk to those in the countryside, not Île-de-France. Real French; not the over-socialized urbanites or the spiritually-deadened "cosmopolitans."

I am convinced that you are a troll if you think people living in Ile-de-France are not real French.

Green name, and an absolute stereotype of a name at that.

I think this bugger is grade AAA troll.

Re: Startups Are Scooping Up Big Tech’s Cast-Off Workers

#222
post #135

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You’re paying for healthcare at a tech company? Usually your company provides this as a benefit. Same for commuter subsidies.

I'm not paying the premium for health insurance, no. But I am paying 200 a month to upgrade to "platinum", I'm paying 400 a month because Blue Shield lists a lifesaving medicine I've been on for 2 decades as a tier 3 drug, so I had to battle with them for 3 weeks to get them to "cover" it at 400 a month out of my pocket. I then have a 4k per family deductible we need to reach on top of the drug co-pays. So when my wi…

The difference between $200k and $80k soothes the ache of that $7204 quite nicely, I suppose.

Re: Startups Are Scooping Up Big Tech’s Cast-Off Workers

#223
post #33

Then move if you don't like a social government... You do understand that USA rich people living of the life's of the poor? No proper health care etc for people cleaning their flats or flipping their burgers...

In Germany, it's not the social system per se but it's aoparent utter ineffectiveness. We're paying more and more every year but the state/public system seems to fail everywhere and worse so than the year before. It's like the money is completely sucked up by some unproductive black hole. And no, it's not because of reduced taxation from rich to working class, or missing taxes on property or some other policy. These…

The problem isn't spending it's the effectiveness of it. The last thing that you want to do is have the government cut spending because it doesn't get rid of the corruption it just cuts the stuff that helps people.

Re: Startups Are Scooping Up Big Tech’s Cast-Off Workers

#224

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In 2022, a 5-year peak year, 313 people in the entire US died from active shooters: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/active-shooters-fbi-report-2022... That's out of 330 million total population.

Active shooter events are but one way to get shot in the US. If we go look at other categories of shootings for 2022 we see that more than 20k people died from non-suicide gunshots. And there were 647 mass shootings. https://www.gunviolencearchive.org/past-tolls

The vast majority of those gun homicides are inner-city gang-on-gang shootings, which is easy to avoid as a white-collar software engineer.

Re: Startups Are Scooping Up Big Tech’s Cast-Off Workers

#225
post #172
post #135

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You’re paying for healthcare at a tech company? Usually your company provides this as a benefit. Same for commuter subsidies.

Outside of FAANG experience. Dental plans rarely cover anything more than basic maintenance costs. One procedure and you can end up pretty deep into pocket. If you require regular medication, that can run pretty deep over a year too, since pharmacare plans have copays.

Dental coverage is not available in many places with nationalized healthcare, such as Canada, Italy, Norway, the Netherlands, and de facto uncovered in the UK. You must pay with a private plan or out of pocket. Only a portion of costs is covered in France, Denmark, and Belgium while the patient must pay the entire amount upfront.

Germany has a situation similar to the US where basic care is fully covered, but more complicated care is not fully covered.

Re: Startups Are Scooping Up Big Tech’s Cast-Off Workers

#226

If it's anything like 2011-2015 these former-FAANG employee heavy startups are going to be desiccated once FAANG decides to start hoarding talent again.

If you let your bottom 20% performers go, what are the odds you'll want them back?

Far be it from me to try to change your mind here, but based on my first hand experience this isn't true.

Myself, and all of members of my team in my location, were laid off 2 weeks ago from one of the big 4 tech companies. Within the 4 people on my team one was stack ranked within the top 20% of the org of ~75 engineers earlier this year and another was in the process of being promoted. The other two were new to the team.

From a strategic perspective as a company, firing us can be considered trimming the fat, but it isn't a reflection on the quality of the engineers. It's a reflection on the leadership of the engineers and if they believe they will be essential for the operation/growth of the org over the next few years.

Before this happened to me I had the same mindset that you had here -- that there was some responsibility the fired engineers had for being fired. I can tell you, from the other side, that just isn't so. The world is bigger than any single person and this stuff happens regardless if you are skilled at your craft or even liked by your coworkers.

It's painful right now for everyone who has been laid off, but from a holistic perspective, I agree with this article. It will be interesting to see what all of these people do with their talents.

Re: Startups Are Scooping Up Big Tech’s Cast-Off Workers

#227

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm not paying the premium for health insurance, no. But I am paying 200 a month to upgrade to "platinum", I'm paying 400 a month because Blue Shield lists a lifesaving medicine I've been on for 2 decades as a tier 3 drug, so I had to battle with them for 3 weeks to get them to "cover" it at 400 a month out of my pocket. I then have a 4k per family deductible we need to reach on top of the drug co-pays. So when my wi…

The difference between $200k and $80k soothes the ache of that $7204 quite nicely, I suppose.

This is the big thing. The bigger salary more than covers the difference. And it's not just tech. Nurses in the UK make 25,000 pounds per year, nurses in the US make $85k or more.

I would rather have the higher salary with student loans, my own health insurance, and no subsidized childcare than make 25K GBP (at a higher tax rate!)

Re: Startups Are Scooping Up Big Tech’s Cast-Off Workers

#228

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I'd rather pay $3 on the toll road and $50k for a surgery myself than pay $10 in taxes towards the road and $100k in taxes towards the healthcare system but receive both of them for "free". That would be a nice scenario to choose to be in. However, the US _government_ pretty much spends more per-person than those countries with a social net [1]. So in reality, you're paying those taxes of those social countries and…

Healthcare is its own issue in the US, as I think the general populous is on average a good bit unhealthier than the average Norwegian, for example. I think it's a combination of poor health education (which also goes back to spending) and culture.

but it's all connected.

- cities designed around cars

- bad worker protection laws

- corporate welfare first before human welfare

- monopolies driving up prices.

Re: Startups Are Scooping Up Big Tech’s Cast-Off Workers

#229
post #33

Then move if you don't like a social government... You do understand that USA rich people living of the life's of the poor? No proper health care etc for people cleaning their flats or flipping their burgers...

In Germany, it's not the social system per se but it's aoparent utter ineffectiveness. We're paying more and more every year but the state/public system seems to fail everywhere and worse so than the year before. It's like the money is completely sucked up by some unproductive black hole. And no, it's not because of reduced taxation from rich to working class, or missing taxes on property or some other policy. These…

There's this really bad logic that seems to govern social spending everywhere, and it states that if a program doesn't work very well, the problem is obviously inadequate funding so increase that. Over and over and over. The end result is this black hole you talk about, endlessly sucking up money.

No one stops to ask why the program or government office doesn't do it's job well, the issue is funding!

Re: Startups Are Scooping Up Big Tech’s Cast-Off Workers

#230

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Healthcare is its own issue in the US, as I think the general populous is on average a good bit unhealthier than the average Norwegian, for example. I think it's a combination of poor health education (which also goes back to spending) and culture.

but it's all connected. - cities designed around cars - bad worker protection laws - corporate welfare first before human welfare - monopolies driving up prices.

US cities were based around cars in 1990. But today, the thinnest state (Colorado) is heavier on average than the fattest state in 1990 (Mississippi, also today's national leader)

Walking is obviously better than not walking, but something other than cars is to blame for the ballooning of the American public. 75% of America is either overweight or obese right now. That alone puts you at risk for about a million health issues and diseases.

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