Would You Forfeit a Raise to Work From Home?

harryk asks: "There seems to have been a fair amount of talk about new jobs, telecommuting, and fair pay recently, so I pose this question: Would you forfeit some or all of a potential raise to work from home? My company is notoroisly bad about giving decent raises so I have been contemplating offering an alternative to receiving a raise, or a reduced raise with an expense reimbursement for telecommuting? What are your thoughts?"

Comments

Would I?

[Jhon]

Not only would I, I have.

I currently work about 60/40 (60% at work, 40% at home). I also live about 5 minutes away from my work. My current employer also allows me to get up and leave in a moments notice (barring anything nasty or important going on at the time).

I've been offered (by another lab) up to twice what I currently make to move out of state and I've also been offered significantly more by other local businesses -- but would require more 'face time' and more than an hour commute. (Yeah, one hour drives (or more) are LOCAL in LA).

Frankly, I'm not in it for the money. Well, that's not entirely true. I'm in it to be able to comfortably be able to take care of my family and myself. I earn enough to pay for a home, put my kids in a private school, buy myself or my wife the occational "toy" or "trinket" and save for our retirement.

Between my wife and myself, my kids have never been picked up from school by ANYONE other than us. Other than medzmama (grandmother), they've never had a baby-sitter. I CAN work crazy hours, but I also get to spend a lot of time with my children. I actually get to RAISE my kids! You can't pay me enough to lose that.

An extra benefit has been the ability to aid my sister (who recently had a stroke) in her recovery. I'm able to take a half-day off once a week and help her read her mail, fill out her bills and make what ever calls she needs to make. So, would I give up a raise for this ability? In a New York minute.

Re:not compensation

[jm92956n]

Many people I've worked with have found that it's more difficult to work from home (especially when it comes down to motivation).

This is a problem that is difficult to overcome. One piece of advice that I once heard is that those who work from home ought to do this every day:

At 8:55am, step out of your home and take a quick five minute walk around the block. Arrive back home at 9am and go straight to a room (home office) that has been specifically set aside for working. At lunch, take another walk, and at 5pm, take yet another walk around the block. Once back home, do NOT go back into the "office" until 9am the next morning. It's very important to distinguish one's home from one's home office.

I realize this is impractical for many system-admins, as they're often "on call," and, while I don't work from home, I still think it's still a solid piece of advice.

Re:No way.

[Leroy_Brown242]

Spend less on gas and transportation.
Spend less on nice clothes for work.
Spend less on the eating out that happens when you work.
Spend less on stress releaving measures you incure because of your commute and work environment.

Poof, there is your raise.

Re:Well, should be pretty simple

[Samrobb]

Well said... I had much the same thoughts. Right now, I have a good job that pays well. What I find myself lacking is time. Being able to telecomute, to me, would mean not just the ability to spend an additional 5-6 hours a week with my family, but also the ability to spend those hours meaningfully - taking 15 minutes to go out and play catch with my oldest, for example, or rock my youngest when it's time for her nap.

I'm not sure I'd take a pay cut to telecommute, but forego a pay raise? Sure. Even if I wasn't missing on my commute time, the added flexibility would more than make up for a few extra dollars in each paycheck.