Take this job or keep looking

amother

Babypink

Wed, Jul 04 2018, 11:42 pm

I currently work five minutes away from my house but we are moving an hour away. I am making 31 an hour and that does not justify the commute so I am looking for a new job. I went on one interview for a company five minutes away from my new house and it has a flexible schedule which is amazing for me with little kids. They were only offering 25 an hour. Does location and flexibility justify the pay decrease or should I keep looking. This company does seem like there is room for growth.

Also it would be amazing to have a job lined up for when I move so I wouldn’t need to commute at all.

naturalmom5

Wed, Jul 04 2018, 11:50 pm

From the little info you provided, its simple math,,

At a current average price of 2.75 a gallon for gas.. Traveling 55/65 an hour to commute an hour means it will cost you around 20 dollars plus tolls if any to your current job.
That's about 100 a week plus babysitting.. Even if your new job pays only 22 an hour you are coming out ahead...

crust

Wed, Jul 04 2018, 11:51 pm

If you keep your current job you will make less per hour, though.

31 times 6 equals 186. Divide that in 8 because you are adding an hour commute each way so it comes to $23.25

amother

Orchid

Wed, Jul 04 2018, 11:53 pm

Op, you can't expect anyone to pay a newly hired employee what they used to make.
I don't know where you live, but where I live $35 an hour is a lot

amother

Babypink

Wed, Jul 04 2018, 11:58 pm

Op. This is the very first interview I had. I know in the short run I’m better off not commuting but if I wait it out maybe I can find better. 25 is definitely underpaying in fact my current job at 31 is underpaying but I never left cuz of location. Location is tempting me again but I feel like I am selling myself short.

amother

Wine

Thu, Jul 05 2018, 12:02 am

amother wrote:

Op, you can't expect anyone to pay a newly hired employee what they used to make.
I don't know where you live, but where I live $35 an hour is a lot

Actually the opposite is true.

crust

Thu, Jul 05 2018, 12:07 am

amother wrote:

Do some more research.
How much do people in the new area get paid for this specific job?
Is there a big field for this in that area or, do you have to run with the first job you find?
Is there really room for growth in the new company or are they just saying it because they want you to first take the job?

WhatFor

Thu, Jul 05 2018, 12:28 am

Have you tried negotiating at the new place? I agree with crust that you should be looking up normal salary rates for your occupation in that area. If it's higher, bring that to their attention.

I do think that quality of life is very important and, all other things being equal, I might take a pay cut for a job close to me and with more flexibility. But probably not to the tune of tens of thousands annually.

amother

Babypink

Thu, Jul 05 2018, 12:30 am

crust wrote:

This is a suburban area so while yes there is a demand for my field and I can get a different job it can easily be 20 30 minutes away. If they are happy with my work there is definitely room for growth. It benefits boss more if he has more workers able to do the more complicated parts. As far as pay this is on the lower end but its a pretty flexible schedule and I have little kids...

Plonis

Thu, Jul 05 2018, 12:34 am

I would take it. I might first try to negotiate a higher salary, or at least a schedule of raises, but I would take it. The quality of life with a flexible schedule and no long commute is priceless.

amother

Wine

Thu, Jul 05 2018, 12:35 am

amother wrote:

I would take it. I might first try to negotiate a higher salary, or at least a schedule of raises, but I would take it. The quality of life with a flexible schedule and no long commute is priceless.

Agree 100%.

amother

Mauve

Thu, Jul 05 2018, 1:36 am

amother wrote:

I would take it. I might first try to negotiate a higher salary, or at least a schedule of raises, but I would take it. The quality of life with a flexible schedule and no long commute is priceless.

This. Couldn't have said it better.

amother

Blush

Thu, Jul 05 2018, 7:43 am

amother wrote:

Op, you can't expect anyone to pay a newly hired employee what they used to make.
I don't know where you live, but where I live $35 an hour is a lot

Not true at all in my experience, typically job changes involve salary increases and not pay cuts, at least in corporate America. Otherwise, why would anyone ever change jobs?

Last edited by amother on Sun, Jul 07 2019, 1:39 pm; edited 1 time in total

amother

Fuchsia

Thu, Jul 05 2018, 8:09 am

When I lived in Brooklyn I was making $34 an hour. I commuted for 2 years after I moved but I also took off 1 day a week since it was all too much for me. I had moved to Lakewood and babysitting was a big issue. At that time (12 years ago) most Lakewood babysitters didn’t want to work past 2pm. Big headaches with babysitting! Sometimes I had someone for the later hours, sometimes I had to leave early. After 2 years I couldn’t take the commute plus pressure of babysitting anymore and gave it up. At the end I found a local job that paid $16 an hour! I figured that even though it was half the pay I wasn’t loosing that much after all.

amother

Lavender

Thu, Jul 05 2018, 8:15 am

naturalmom5 wrote:

There is wear and tear on the car. I guess you live in a place with no traffic and only highways.

naturalmom5

Thu, Jul 05 2018, 9:48 am

amother wrote:

There is wear and tear on the car. I guess you live in a place with no traffic and only highways.

This is very true.. I should of taken that into consideration as well

amother

Babypink

Thu, Jul 05 2018, 12:20 pm

naturalmom5 wrote:

This is very true.. I should of taken that into consideration as well

My work car is a lease so wear and tear is not an issue and I have enough miles to do the commute.

mha3484

Thu, Jul 05 2018, 12:24 pm

I work 5 minutes from home. My boss is really nice to me and I get an enormous amount of flexibility. There are so many ways that this job saves us money and stress that even thought I get paid at the lower end of market rate for my industry I am not going anywhere. Really I need to make more so its tempting to start applying for jobs that pay more but at the end of the day I wont see that money it will just pay for us to have a second car, cleaning help and take out which now I dont need since I come home with a lot more energy since I dont have a commute like I used to.

Librarian

Thu, Jul 05 2018, 2:54 pm

Take the job! The benefits of flexibility and being close to home are enormous! And there is room to grow. Tufasta miruba lo tufasta