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“Anti-perks”: what our startup doesn't want in our office

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Re: “Anti-perks”: what our startup doesn't want in our office

#71

Post by MarkCole »

TylerE wrote: post #61
MarkCole wrote: post #56

Something that stuck out for me: > "Don’t get me wrong — Even has plenty of perks. Our team is offered paid vacation time (with a minimum number of days off)" Is paid vacation time really a perk? Is vacation time usually unpaid in the US or something? Or maybe the perk is the minimum number of days off?

In the US the employer is under NO obligation to provide vacation time, period. Paid, or otherwise.

I was under the impression there was a statutory amount, but it was ridiculously low. To have none at all is pretty damn terrifying.

Re: “Anti-perks”: what our startup doesn't want in our office

#72

Post by rwmj »

geofft wrote: post #34
samfriedman wrote: post #19

I wonder if they allow employees to expense lunch on the town, as opposed to paying for catering. I believe Snap Inc. works with local eateries to provide free food for employees, e.g.

Why can't they just pay more? I feel like one of the primary things I want a salary for is meals.

Plus if they just pay you more, you can bring a packed lunch to work and save the money towards holidays / savings / gifts / financial independence / whatever.

Re: “Anti-perks”: what our startup doesn't want in our office

#73

Post by balls187 »

MarkCole wrote: post #56

Something that stuck out for me: > "Don’t get me wrong — Even has plenty of perks. Our team is offered paid vacation time (with a minimum number of days off)" Is paid vacation time really a perk? Is vacation time usually unpaid in the US or something? Or maybe the perk is the minimum number of days off?

It's pretty much a standard perk for any tech company worth their salt.

The minimum number of days off is pretty much a BS perk too.

Re: “Anti-perks”: what our startup doesn't want in our office

#74

Post by balls187 »

throwaway2016a wrote: post #62
Dowwie wrote: post #33

"I’m sure having a pet visit the office once would be a treat, but every day quickly can become a burden on the team." Would people who are burdened by an office dog please share your experiences?

We have a dog friendly office and it drives me crazy sometimes. One dog is fine but when you get them in pairs they like to play. And having a dog wrestling 4 feet away from you is distracting. I like dogs and I will make it a point to befriend the ones in the office but at some point it becomes disruptive.

Yes, that's kind of the key. A single dog at the office is great.

A bunch of dogs turns the office into a dog park.

I love dogs, have two of em, wife is a key member of a dog rescue, and I loved bringing my dogs in the office. But no way do I want a bunch of dogs at the office.

Re: “Anti-perks”: what our startup doesn't want in our office

#75

Post by bpicolo »

Endy wrote: post #63
MarkCole wrote: post #56

Something that stuck out for me: > "Don’t get me wrong — Even has plenty of perks. Our team is offered paid vacation time (with a minimum number of days off)" Is paid vacation time really a perk? Is vacation time usually unpaid in the US or something? Or maybe the perk is the minimum number of days off?

It's a major perk in the US. Vacation time is basically reserved for management or C-Suite folks, especially if it's paid.

> is basically reserved for management or C-Suite folks

Oh comon, it's entirely expected in the white-collar world. The difference is it's not federally mandated.

Re: “Anti-perks”: what our startup doesn't want in our office

#76

Post by ChuckMcM »

civilian wrote: post #55
ChuckMcM wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Actually, it could address an interesting issue depending on how it is implemented. If you gave team members a 'perks' stipend you could tax it appropriately, and you could have your employee spend it on the things that were important to them. Then create a way to scan your badge to access a perk and voila, custom perks. No, I don't actually think it is workable, the two arguments that will pop up immediately are : 1…

The nice thing about perks is that they come out as company expenses--- so they don't get hit by payroll taxes or personal income taxes. Which potentially means that you get to double money spent on perks. You're right that it would be cool if we could customize it. Give people "perks cards", which come out of company expenses (takes advantage of the above avoiding-income-tax multiplier) and let them spend it on what…

There is history here that you may not be aware of, it is a constant battle between the IRS and companies. The IRS insists that companies 'break out' any such company provided services on a per employee basis and include the value of those services in the employee's W2 taxable income field.

Once a company reaches a size where the amount of tax revenue crosses some threshold, the IRS starts bugging you. Apple, Google, SGI, Sun, IBM, and Microsoft are all companies that I know of that have negotiated settlements of one form or another.

Re: “Anti-perks”: what our startup doesn't want in our office

#77

Post by bpicolo »

balls187 wrote: post #73
MarkCole wrote: post #56

Something that stuck out for me: > "Don’t get me wrong — Even has plenty of perks. Our team is offered paid vacation time (with a minimum number of days off)" Is paid vacation time really a perk? Is vacation time usually unpaid in the US or something? Or maybe the perk is the minimum number of days off?

It's pretty much a standard perk for any tech company worth their salt. The minimum number of days off is pretty much a BS perk too.

> The minimum number of days off is pretty much a BS perk too.

I wouldn't call it a perk, but it's in the interest of the business to help prevent burnout.

Re: “Anti-perks”: what our startup doesn't want in our office

#78

Post by ThrustVectoring »

Dowwie wrote: post #33

"I’m sure having a pet visit the office once would be a treat, but every day quickly can become a burden on the team." Would people who are burdened by an office dog please share your experiences?

One dog decided that he was in charge of figuring out if people were "allowed" to be in the office and that he should bark if they weren't. I wasn't on the list the first couple days and would literally get barked at if I walked across the office to get water.

Re: “Anti-perks”: what our startup doesn't want in our office

#80

Post by djhworld »

stefco_ wrote: post #21

> But as we grow in size, we also plan to grow in the diversity of our perspectives and backgrounds — which is even more reason not to add a bunch of extraneous or overly specific perks. Especially as our team diversifies, we can’t (and shouldn’t) strive to have a one-size-fits-all office or benefits package. This is a great point about bringing in diverse hires. If you optimize your perks to appeal to you, then you'…

> One of my friends is in an office environment where they play Quake III for an hour a day. This perk is actually a mandatory bonding session

I've been a gamer for most of my life, but this would horrify me as a perk as it's completely exclusionary (which backs up your point)

Imagine being the employee that doesn't play games, it's like mandatory doing office sports

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