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“Reasons you shouldn't join us: if you're looking for work-life balance.”

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Re: “Reasons you shouldn't join us: if you're looking for work-life balance.”

#51

Post by Iftheshoefits »

mkoryak wrote: post #5
Iftheshoefits wrote: post #4

Earlier quoted context omitted.

See, the trouble is there are people in this industry who would work at this place, and that contributes to lower wages and poorer working conditions. Sure, I won't work there but the fact that others will has an impact on me at least indirectly. I think that's sufficient reason to call out this kind of job/company for the bullshit it is.

Isn't that kind of like saying that those guys who always stay past 6pm or come in before 8am are assholes?

"Asshole" isn't the right word, assuming you mean they are working overtime regularly without pay. I'd probably use other words like "gullible" and "useful idiot[1]." And, yes, I would put them in the same tent as the other useful idiots who'd happily (as opppsed to out of desperation) take a job advertised as per the link in the article.

[1] http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Useful_idiot

Re: “Reasons you shouldn't join us: if you're looking for work-life balance.”

#52

Post by some_furry »

uptown wrote: post #7

Blockai: https://angel.co/blockai/jobs/32805-back-end-engineer PRODUCT Blockai is the first universal blockchain browser. A single platform for using the best blockchain apps, with a bitcoin wallet and social identity to make it simple to use. We’re making it fun to explore and publish on the blockchain, visualized as a filterable stream. The same way that Netscape took people into the world of the web, and built ope…

> You'll be responsible for the reliability, security and scalability of our platform. You'll also get your hands dirty creating open-source protocols, customer service and whatever else the constantly evolving situation demands.

> - BONUS: BitcoinJS, Multi-Sig, Cryptography, APIs, Automated Tests, C++, HTML/CSS, React.js.

Security, Cryptography, Protocol Design, all for $80k-$100k per year. In SF.

Good luck with that. Anyone in SF with security and crypto experience is easily worth double.

Re: “Reasons you shouldn't join us: if you're looking for work-life balance.”

#53

Post by matt_morgan »

We're all talking about what we would do when seeing this job post, but the issue isn't how many thousands of us wouldn't apply, but how many dozens would. And it's easy enough to test response rates to these things. I.e., as much as it turns off many of us it might turn on a few people, and they may even have some evidence that this approach works. No clue whether they did or didn't, but they can always post it again if they don't get applicants they like.

There's no point in debating what we like when they can get the right answer with confidence via testing.

Re: “Reasons you shouldn't join us: if you're looking for work-life balance.”

#54

Post by chimprich »

akuma73 wrote: post #38
some_furry wrote: post #3

Another reason: "You're primarily interested with salary." Sounds like this company prides itself on overworking their employees and paying them less than what they're worth. (Which is what a lot of companies do , but they aren't proud of it.)

Employers pay their employees exactly what they're worth - by definition. If an employee is dissatisfied with their pay, they have the option to either negotiate a higher salary or find another job with higher pay.

Your two sentences rather contradict each other - if an employee is already being paid what they're worth they should be unable to negotiate a higher salary or find a higher-paid job.

Re: “Reasons you shouldn't join us: if you're looking for work-life balance.”

#55

Post by akuma73 »

chimprich wrote: post #54
akuma73 wrote: post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Employers pay their employees exactly what they're worth - by definition. If an employee is dissatisfied with their pay, they have the option to either negotiate a higher salary or find another job with higher pay.

Your two sentences rather contradict each other - if an employee is already being paid what they're worth they should be unable to negotiate a higher salary or find a higher-paid job.

Yes, you're right, of course.

Being more specific - there may be transition periods where you may become more valuable (through training or whatever) at which point you have the opportunity to seek higher compensation. If one does not seek higher compensation, then one is trading their higher potential salary for other wants/needs (maybe they trade the enjoyment of their current work at a lower pay over the higher salary at another job).

In equilibrium and in an efficient market, the value of the labor provided is equal to the cost of the labor provided.

Of course, in the real world, there are inefficiencies and irrational behaviors, but to a first order - it's approximately correct.

Re: “Reasons you shouldn't join us: if you're looking for work-life balance.”

#56

Post by sp332 »

freehunter wrote: post #46
sp332 wrote: post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Like what?

My job. Sitting at home in my pajamas, in a place a hell of lot cheaper than SF, making about the same amount these guys are offering (according to a link someone posted further up). I think I'll go for a walk at lunch, and keep working from the nature preserve down the road because it's a nice day. And when my wife gets home, 90% of the time the laptop closes and I'm off the clock. If you can't imagine a job paying…

It is tough. What do you do that's so valuable?

Re: “Reasons you shouldn't join us: if you're looking for work-life balance.”

#57

Post by Iftheshoefits »

VanillaCafe wrote: post #33
nhstanley wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

$100k in SF is laughable (for that kind of commitment). If you're not offering $200k minimum, it's not even worth 60 seconds of consideration. Unless you really really believe in that 6%. But man you really shouldn't. Edit: To back this up a little more: To buy a median house in SF you need to make ~$142k. http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2015/03/08/m... The 95th percentile in income is WAY higher in S…

I'm a San Franciscan. $100k is indeed low, but $200k is an exaggeration.

If it's an exaggeration then this industry's labor pool is in even worse shape than I suspected.

To put this in context: I'd consider myself average, maybe slightly above in some contexts, below in (many more) others, and my current salary (full-time, all-in) is closer to $200k than $150k. The majority (about 80%) of that is base salary, not "bonus", stocks/options, or benefits. If I can get a ("senior developer" level, not management) job with that compensation, the people in this valley who are much better than me (and that would be most, or at least many, many others) ought to be able to command significantly more.

Re: “Reasons you shouldn't join us: if you're looking for work-life balance.”

#58

Post by Dewie »

abuehrle wrote: post #2

So don't work for this company? Sometimes people live and breathe the work they do, and are looking for others who will as well. It's up to you to decide whether you want to participate in what they're doing.

I seriously want to meet the kind of person who looks at a job advert, maybe does an interview, and then decides "Yep, this is the kind of job that I would like to live and breath".

I can understand if someone does a job for a good while and gets invested and passionate about it. But who are these people who just look at job adverts and say "Yep, I could definitely centre my whole life around this."?

Re: “Reasons you shouldn't join us: if you're looking for work-life balance.”

#59

Post by ashwinaj »

Maybe I'm in the minority with my opinion. This is pretty common in most startups in Silicon Valley (it is true in the one I'm working for currently). You usually have an option of getting a less pay, more equity or higher pay, less equity. It is assumed that you won't have much of a work-life balance, but some would like to spell it out clearly. Nobody forced me into this, I chose it because I wanted to work with brilliant people (I'm not saying there aren't any in established companies) and roll the dice and see where it goes.

I really don't see how this is so controversial when there is a chance, however small, that there could be a big windfall if things fall into place. For someone who values work-life balance, they should look to join an established company.

Re: “Reasons you shouldn't join us: if you're looking for work-life balance.”

#60

Post by jazzyk »

imroot wrote: post #35

I had a company effectively tell me the same thing -- that taking their job would be disastrous for my hobbies/family ("We work from 10AM until 11PM most days, and later on Friday and Saturday") and then gave me a salary formula that would bring me down to making less than half of what I was currently making. I politely declined -- and am still getting emails from them once a week saying that they'd love to have me o…

Then they will complain about "lack of skilled people to fill jobs"...
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