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Basecamp Employee Handbook

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Re: Basecamp Employee Handbook

#81

Post by slantyyz »

toomuchtodo wrote: post #34
maccard wrote: post #29

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The best course of action is either don't travel to the US, or don't carry the devices at all. I wouldn't be surprised to find my electronics had been confiscated when importing them ahead of my travels.

I'm a US citizen who lives in the US. Not traveling to the US is not an option.

>> I'm a US citizen who lives in the US. Not traveling to the US is not an option.

Why isn't it an option? The only way for you to "travel to the US" is to leave the US in the first place. You have the option to not travel outside of the US.

AFAIK, while you have to deal with the TSA, you don't have to deal with customs/immigration for domestic flights.

Re: Basecamp Employee Handbook

#82

Post by sotojuan »

ryandrake wrote: post #66
tptacek wrote: post #15

There's a lot of good stuff here. I'm surprised about their take on speaking engagements (they're OK as long as they don't involve multi-day travel obligations). I get that you don't want team members touring talks or becoming conference tourists. But a lot of companies want their employees doing speaking engagements; Matasano/NCC, my old employer, pays a pretty substantial cash bonus for every time you do that.

Is "doing speaking engagements" really a big thing in tech? I've been in the industry for close to 20 years and have never felt the need to (or been asked to) go drone on about something at a conference somewhere, or even to go attend one for that matter. I couldn't even tell you what any major software conferences are, although I'd probably recognize the names of some of them.

No, it's just one of those things that us popular among HNers, like blogging or being on Twitter all day. Of my team only me has ever attended a conference.

Re: Basecamp Employee Handbook

#83

Post by raz32dust »

dejv wrote: post #80
tptacek wrote: post #44

Earlier quoted context omitted.

6 paid weeks parental leave for secondary caregivers puts them in the top tier of "major" companies, as does 16 weeks paid for primary caregivers; that's more than Google offered a few years ago. It's a bit disingenuous to zero in on the unpaid leave policy; what they're saying is, if you need more than 6 weeks, they'll try to work something out with you, and it'll probably be fine. They're being explicit about somet…

As a father of 11 month old, I can't imagine how people can live with just 6 or even 16 weeks of maternity leave. Even after almost one year it feels like care is (at least) full time job, which would be quite hard to outsource. In my EU country you will get up to three years of paid maternity leave per child, so I guess I am just spoiled.

3 years sounds extreme. How is a person supposed to run a business with that kind of law? More than 6 months paid leave is too long from a business perspective. The government can tax and guarantee income, but I am not for paid parental leave > 6 months paid by businesses.

Re: Basecamp Employee Handbook

#84

Post by [deleted] »

toomuchtodo wrote: post #70
mr_ndrsn wrote: post #61

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It is. We're hiring for Ops, too! https://m.signalvnoise.com/become-the-newest-member-of-our-o... Looking to spread our timezones a bit more, hoping to see lots of EU/Pac applicants!

Looking at the job req, it mentions the expectation is for 5 minute response times when you're on call (from alert to being online) and that you're on call one week a month. Is the compensation provided in line with essentially working 24 hours a day for a week once per month? https://basecamp.workable.com/j/A5A189B311 "We have a shared on call responsibility which is about 1 week (5 week days, and 2 weekend days) a…

[deleted]

Re: Basecamp Employee Handbook

#85

Post by amyjess »

toomuchtodo wrote: post #70
mr_ndrsn wrote: post #61

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It is. We're hiring for Ops, too! https://m.signalvnoise.com/become-the-newest-member-of-our-o... Looking to spread our timezones a bit more, hoping to see lots of EU/Pac applicants!

Looking at the job req, it mentions the expectation is for 5 minute response times when you're on call (from alert to being online) and that you're on call one week a month. Is the compensation provided in line with essentially working 24 hours a day for a week once per month? https://basecamp.workable.com/j/A5A189B311 "We have a shared on call responsibility which is about 1 week (5 week days, and 2 weekend days) a…

Wow, that sounds horribly oppressive. What that basically means is "For 1 week a month, you can forget about going to the movies, going out to eat, going shopping, or going anywhere where you're not within 5 minutes of a desktop computer. You can probably forget about cooking, too, unless you're willing to start a kitchen fire when you get an alert. Hope you like DoorDash!"

I would literally rather work the counter at Taco Bell than work in an environment like that.

Edit: And forget about going to the doctor, too. I can't wait for an employee to go to the doctor for a medical emergency, miss an alert, get fired, and then launch a spectacular lawsuit.

Y'know, the doctor's office around the corner from me actively bans cell phones past the waiting room. They have huge signs saying "NO CELL PHONES" at the back of the waiting room and in every exam room.

Re: Basecamp Employee Handbook

#86

Post by s73ver »

raz32dust wrote: post #83
dejv wrote: post #80

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As a father of 11 month old, I can't imagine how people can live with just 6 or even 16 weeks of maternity leave. Even after almost one year it feels like care is (at least) full time job, which would be quite hard to outsource. In my EU country you will get up to three years of paid maternity leave per child, so I guess I am just spoiled.

3 years sounds extreme. How is a person supposed to run a business with that kind of law? More than 6 months paid leave is too long from a business perspective. The government can tax and guarantee income, but I am not for paid parental leave > 6 months paid by businesses.

Business isn't the only thing in the world.

Re: Basecamp Employee Handbook

#87

Post by kzisme »

knodi123 wrote: post #63
kzisme wrote: post #52

> Basecamp will pay up to $100/month for your gym membership, yoga studio membership, or whatever activity you do to stay in shape. Is this sort of thing common? I wish my current employer did something like this. While I'm still skimming some of the documents - Basecamp sounds like a cool place to work.

I think it is often subsidized by your health insurance. But even if it isn't, it just makes sense - healthy employees need fewer sick days, and have better mental health and energy levels.

Thanks for the reply - I was just curious because currently (first job post graduation) nothing like that is offered where I work and I would take advantage of it if I got the chance.
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