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Poll: Why are people leaving their jobs?

news.ycombinator.com

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Re: Poll: Why are people leaving their jobs?

#721

Post by grog454 »

tome wrote: post #711
grog454 wrote: post #670

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>You just earned loyalty points which are hard to come by. Employers probably love when you give them "loyalty points" because they can be substituted for their more tangible "dollar points".

Based on my reading of the story the employer bought loyalty points with dollar points. How did they obtain them in your reading?

I don't think it matters how they're obtained. What is the value/meaning of a loyalty point if it can't be substituted with a dollar point? Either they only come in to play when you have an offer for exactly the same dollar value (after transfer costs), as a tie breaker of sorts, or they are eventually going to be valued at some dollar amount. i.e. this new employer is offering an additional $10 (after transfer costs) but I'm more loyal to my current employer.

Re: Poll: Why are people leaving their jobs?

#722

Post by robertlagrant »

ghaff wrote: post #418
robertlagrant wrote: post #357

Earlier quoted context omitted.

People like secret words that show they're in a certain group. It's called PLSWTSTIACG.

It came out of research at Harvard (by the authors of Getting to Yes) and is related to game theory. So it's academic (and therefore jargony) but is probably also intended to be more precise than alternatives or options. That said, for day to day use, understand your alternatives if the parties can't come to an agreement works perfectly well.

Yeah, makes sense. It's possible no-one felt it was okay to say, "do we just mean 'fallback' or 'plan B'?"

Re: Poll: Why are people leaving their jobs?

#723

Post by forgotmypw17 »

I left about 7-8 years ago, depending on how you count.

I gradually came to the realization that I'd rather be a pauper and writing software as an art/passion than making six figures writing whatever kind of software I got paid to write.

I chose "other" in this poll.

Re: Poll: Why are people leaving their jobs?

#724

Post by humanrebar »

WestCoastJustin wrote: post #73
diob wrote: post #39

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think the old generation really bought into this, but the new generation knows it's a load of bull. The poll makes it pretty obvious that compensation is the biggest reason folks leave, and it's the thinking of the old generation who doesn't know how to retain talent (they do, but they keep throwing pizza parties / sending out merch instead). It's a real "it can't be helped" mentality around retention.

Why is compensation #1 though? There is a threshold where you have enough money and it's easier to work with people you know and like. So, what do they need that extra money for? As I mentioned elsewhere housing is currently the #1 issues I see here in Canada that people are focused on. If you are a front line person, making $15 at a restaurant, plus renting where housing costs $1m+, you are probably looking for opti…

Inflation went up 7% in 2021. Inflation in popular urban markets was worse. Market rate for good engineers probably went up more than that.

Even a 10% pay raise was meh with that in mind.

How many engineering companies are prepared to give 15-20% pay raises to keep up with these kinds of conditions? How many are handing out 7% adjustments proudly?

Re: Poll: Why are people leaving their jobs?

#725

Post by humanrebar »

beanjuiceII wrote: post #268
joe_fishfish wrote: post #103

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Do you know anyone where that threshold has been reached? Anyone with a family? Given the way inflation is going, I know maybe one person, and they're single with their mortgage paid off.

I recently just left my job for another because of inflation, if the price of things go up so should my salary. The value of my work did not get cheaper!

Not tying my job to expensive urban markets would help!

But I'm hesitant to describe my salary needs in terms of my household costs. I want to get paid by the value I bring first and foremost. And, similarly, what the market clearing rate for an engineer with my capabilities is. Not "market rate" unless I'm truly a median engineer, especially since companies tend to be underinformed about market rates.

Re: Poll: Why are people leaving their jobs?

#726

Post by temporallobe »

kmc059000 wrote: post #668
temporallobe wrote: post #652

Wish I had seen this thread earlier, as this will get burried now. Oh well, here it goes: I am seriously considering leaving my current position as a lead developer because I am basically taking on the role and tasking of SCRUM master, architect, build engineer, DB admin, UI/UX consultant, technical writer, and not to mention - developer! I often find myself writing unit tests until 11 or 12 because I am stuck in mee…

I experienced something similar in terms of having to juggle numerous responsibilities spanning multiple roles. It is unfortunate and not only is your company taking advantage of you, your coworkers are too. This is at least what I experienced where I'd go out of my way to help others yet those I helped rarely paid it back. I'm in between jobs now and am down leveling in my new role to a senior developer from an arch…

You’re right about the retention bonus not being life-changing money, but it’s actually a pretty nice chunk (roughly a month’s salary). It’s more about keeping promises and trust. When companies start taking away perks and compensation or weasel their way out of promises, it’s a red flag. I left a really good position at a major defense contractor for similar reasons, then came back to work as an IC for far more moolah.

Re: Poll: Why are people leaving their jobs?

#727

Post by humanrebar »

manquer wrote: post #567
jjav wrote: post #534

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I do find it surprising compensation is at the top. I've never changed jobs over money. In fact several times I've taken new jobs that pay less on the promise of it being more fun. Which is not to say I'll work for unreasonably low pay, I talk comp ranges with recruiters first to know if it is worth continuing the discussion. But beyond a reasonable point, more pay doesn't make any difference (well, unless it's like…

If the compensation does not impact basic lifestyle, then yes people do like to choose better /interesting jobs provided their hygiene needs are getting met, that is becoming harder every year. Rents/ Mortgages / College Fees are all climbing higher than compensation increases at the entry level. Even in tech there are a plenty of people paid less than 80 or 90k. On top of that these hefty student loans and high rent…

Compensation always affects lifestyle. If nothing else, it lets you spend your way to a negligible commute.

Re: Poll: Why are people leaving their jobs?

#728

Post by tharkun__ »

wbl wrote: post #654
tharkun__ wrote: post #592

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Disclaimer: I'm not trying to say anything about or against your parent here. This can be a very subjective thing. How do you 'rank'? This is not something that is completely clearcut, cut and dry and you are 100% accurate without fail. Example: I have a guy on my team that is 'more junior' than some others. He's killing it though. He's consistently behaving like he's got 10 more years of experience than he does and…

In six months are you going to promote him? If not why not?

You are missing a few other questions and are assuming this can only go one way.

Are you going to promote him? If so, why? Are you going to give him a meager raise? If so why? Are you going to give him a proper raise? ...

FWIW, the "Senior" is no longer in play. I do not tolerate such incompetence for long. And yes I am doing everything I can to get the 'junior' a proper raise and a large bonus.

Re: Poll: Why are people leaving their jobs?

#729

Post by rr808 »

deeteecee wrote: post #571
rr808 wrote: post #20

I had a job that I enjoyed and excelled at. I did great, got good bonuses so I didn't move for 10 years. Then I got laid off. It was really really hard to find work again as my background wasn't full of hot technology, and I had no experience of modern interviewing (like leetcode). I dont want to be in that position again, so I'm interviewing again after a few years already.

FWIW I have the active, recent interview and work experience and even after preparation and attempts for an entire year, I did not find a new job.

Good luck. I dont really understand it how there is this huge shortage but employers still are so picky.
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