#JobDecision #CareerGrowth #PTO #WorkLifeBalance
Hey there! Congrats on the new job offer, and that’s amazing news about the $20K pay raise – what a boost! 💰I totally understand where you’re coming from with the PTO and sick leave situation, though. It’s always a tough decision when you have to weigh the pros and cons of a job offer, especially when it comes to balancing work and personal time.
First off, it’s awesome that you’re already thinking about the impact this change will have on your work-life balance. It’s important to consider how much time off you’ll have to recharge and take care of yourself outside of work. The new job only offering 2 weeks of PTO and 1 week of sick leave is definitely something to think about, especially if you’re used to having 4 weeks of PTO at your current job.
But hey, I totally get where you’re coming from with the pay raise being a big factor in your decision. An extra $20K a year can really make a difference and open up new opportunities for you. 💼💪 It sounds like you’re also excited about the growth potential in the new role, which is another huge plus. Having room to develop and advance in your career is super valuable.
On the flip side, the hybrid work arrangement and the change in your commute are important considerations as well. 🚗 Working remotely has its perks, and it’s great that your current job gives you that flexibility. Switching to a hybrid model might mean adjusting to a different routine, but it seems like the commute won’t be too much of a hassle, which is a good thing.
Speaking of your current job, it sounds like you have an awesome setup there with a great manager and a lot of flexibility. I can understand why you’d be hesitant to leave that behind. It’s great that you have a good relationship with your manager and a supportive work environment. Maybe requesting another call with the new manager could help give you a better sense of what to expect in terms of support and flexibility at the new job.
It’s worth considering how the change in work environment and management might impact your day-to-day experience. You’ve mentioned that you’re not a big vacation person, but it’s always nice to have the option, right? Having more PTO gives you the flexibility to take a break when you need it, whether it’s for a vacation or just to recharge and unwind.
Ultimately, it sounds like you’re leaning toward taking the new job for the growth opportunities it offers, even if it means sacrificing some of the perks and flexibility you currently enjoy. That’s totally understandable, and it’s great that you’re weighing all of these factors as part of your decision-making process.
It’s a big decision to make, and there’s a lot to consider. At the end of the day, it’s about finding the balance that works best for you and your career goals. Taking the new job could be a great move for your professional development, and if it doesn’t work out as expected, you can always reassess your options down the line.
Whatever you decide, just know that you’re making a thoughtful and informed choice. It’s clear that you’re approaching this decision with a lot of consideration for what’s important to you. I hope this helps, and I’m wishing you the best of luck with your decision! 🌟🤞
Is this an entry level position? PTO is usually negotiable and typically if it’s a mid career move you can negotiate more PTO to match your current position.
remote? does the commute change? is it aligned to career goals? other benefits like better health insurance/free, tuition reimbursement, etc, things you may like? PTO is usually a huge factor, but it’s worth considering other aspects of both jobs
PS: Assuming biweekly pay periods, your 4 hours of sick leave per pay period is 13 eight hour days per year.
How much does it cost you to take the extra two weeks unpaid time off?
100k/26 = 3846.
If negotiating for more PTO fails, ask about UTO policy.
I’d take a 20k increase for 2 less weeks of pto. The amount of PTO you have goes up every few years everywhere I’ve worked. Is this the case at the new job? Personal preference I suppose but I’d take $20k over 2 weeks of vacation any day.
“I currently have 4 weeks of PTO, will you match that?”
Is this job remote or hybrid at all? This could make a huge difference (for example, I work remotely when I visit my family for the holidays and it means I use less leave time)
Your old job is giving your 20 PTO days + 13 sick days and the new job is only giving you 15 days total? Those 18 additional days are surely worth something. Maybe not $20 grand, but damn that’s a lot to give up.
Try to negotiate. The worst thing that can happen is that they get offended and rescind the offer.
And honestly, if that is the type of company they are, you are better off finding out now so you can avoid them.
The most likely thing to happen is they just say no.
It REALLY depends on manager and work environment. Some firms you have a lot of PTO but you don’t really get to use it. Others you don’t have much on paper but your manager doesn’t make you put it in if you take a day off here or there.
Basically, outside of PTO policy itself, get a good sense of work load, team, and culture of the new place to compare with existing job.
Does the new company give more PTO as your seniority increases? That’s what I’ve found, and I’ve seen that it is quite normal to start new employees, even very experienced ones, with the minimum PTO values you mention. I’d ask for more PTO but expect a “no” in response. Then ask for a $5000 or $7500 pay bump instead, assuming they are gracious in turning down your initial request for PTO.
Time off is good for your mental health. Keep that in mind.
Sometimes PTO is negotiable. After all, time is the most valuable thing you have. Once you spend it, it’s gone forever. No refunds or exchanges.
It might seem like it is worth it, bit you have no clue how the actual new environment, colleagues and work will be.
I would stay at the current job and see if you can get a raise. It might give you some leverage and maybe get it.
The loss of PTO days is huge in US standards.
And the work from home vs hybrid might also be a benefit as you keep working with most mild sickness symptoms. And if they actually require you to be in the office at the new job it will coat your days.
WFH and Hybrid would be the difference for me. I love wfh and not dealing with traffic or colleagues in person.
Are the retirement plans comparable? Is the matching funds vested right away?
It’s hybrid for now. Any chance the new job goes to 4 (or even 5) days in office in the next 12ish months?
How old are you? Do you have kids/partner? How is your health and the health of your loved ones? How much do you value free time? These are the questions I ask myself. I personally would not give up PTO because my pay is in a zone where I’m comfortable. I’m in the 2nd half of my career. More money doesn’t buy me more happiness in my pay zone, at least to me because I don’t value money more than time. What matters to me is time. Time to spend with loved ones and friends. Time to work out. Time to meditate. Time is more valuable that money at my age and salary.
As others have said, try to negotiate for more PTO. In my opinion it’s better to have a good reason for the ask instead of it just being that you want more. Be open to alternative solutions. At my last job I asked if they could spot me 60 hours of PTO as a signing bonus because I had a lot of planned time off early on. They wouldn’t do that and instead offered me four more days of PTO per year.
I also think it can work to your benefit to jump a couple times between a job with better benefits and one with purely higher salary.
Job 1: earn average salary, good PTO, sick time, 401(k) match
Job 2: “I’m giving up a lot in benefits; I’ll need a significant boost in salary to make it worth my while”
Job 3: “I expect you can beat my current salary. Now, tell me about your excellent benefits package.”
PTO wouldn’t bother me at all, pay bump is worth it. However, going from remote to hybrid is not worth it to me.
Also worth thinking/asking about flexibility around unpaid time if you took 3.6 weeks off unpaid you would still make 93k a year that said some places really won’t let you take time off beyond your PTO in normal circumstances.
I think the difference between the benefit is about 10k so your “raise” should take that into consideration
Tell your current job the offer. Maybe they can offer a raise, even if not 20k
I would go back to the current place and ask, “What can I do to earn a raise and promotion?”
See what they say. you might be happy. They might tell you to bugger off.
I took a job assuming good career growth and promotion. Didn’t work out that way, but did turn into 100% WFH, flex hours, unlimited vacation, great boss…
Maybe you should try to get a raise at your current company.
If it works, you get all the perks of your current company plus the extra money.
If it doesn’t work, you really do have to choose which one to take. You will also know that your current company doesn’t feel like you deserve the extra pay.
Time > $ at a certain point.
That point of inflection is up to you.
Sick leave is unimportant, in my opinion. I haven’t taken a ‘sick day’ in over a decade. PTO, on the other hand, is important. However, do you find you need all that your old job gave you? My company offers 33 days a year, and I never even get close to using it. Usually, it’s more like 23 days taken, and that’s if I take 2 weeks off in December before it expires.
Lots of jobs let you ‘purchase’ more pto. Basically, a small amount is subtracted from your check each week, and in turn, you get more days off. My company allows this, though I’m not sure why anyone would ever use it when we already get so many days off. It’s effectively unpaid leave, but the unpaid-ness is spread out a small amount per check, rather than the week you took off.
If I were you, I’d try to leverage the offer with your current job. If they say no, then take the new one.
If they give you a raise to stay, then you get more money and keep your pto. Win win
As someone that has been actually using my entire quota of 5 weeks PTO every year. I would probably not take that trade off.
PTO is too valuable to me, as I enjoy traveling and spending time doing the things I like.
But it really depends on your financial situation.
I personally wouldn’t, but I’m paid well enough to live the life I like. Just comes down to what you value, and the growth you feel it will give you to jump to where you see yourself most of your career.
That’s shit PTO frankly so I can’t see the other employee benefits and moral to be great, so just plan for a potential next step in a year or two. But who knows it also could be great!
Why do people forget to negotiate PTO?
I’d give up half my pay for a 20% reduction in hours and a doubling of my PTO. Pipe dreams obviously but time off is very valuable to me. Less time at work is more time spent with my family, pets and friends, or even just taking care of my house better.
I don’t consider 2 weeks of PTO and a week of sick leave to be minimal. That’s pretty good. Although it’s much less than what you currently get. I personally value my free time and vacation time quite highly. It’s a tough decision.
Just a heads up that the advice I see here is always heavily skewed towards WFH and more PTO at the expense of almost any raise. If you are career focused and aim to advance your career and earn a high salary you need to take on jobs with better titles and more growth opportunity. Even if you only stay for 1 or 2 years it will do more for your career and expand your network.
If you have big reasons for needing to take a lot of time off or WFH then that’s another story but it most definitely will slow your salary growth and career advancement down. I went from 29k my first year of career to 200k+ and that would absolutely not be the case if I turned down opportunities for things like PTO. Now I have both of those benefits but I would be nowhere near the same point if I prioritized those while I was working my way up to it.
I would work with 1 week PTO for a 25 percent pay increase.
It also probably helps that I enjoy my job.
This isn’t really a finance question, it’s a personal question… Personally I wouldn’t do it. Remote work is a huge boon, having a flexible, good manager is worth a lot and two weeks PTO isn’t much.
Do some math: how much more or less will you spend to switch jobs? If you’re making an extra 20k a year but driving an extra hour a day, you’re giving up 260 hours a year for that. Also, how much do you personally value your time off work? Some people will grind, some people want more time for hobbies etc.
Take stock of what matters to you, and make that choice.
I’m in the interview process for a job that has 3 weeks pto and 1 week sick leave. I currently get around 7 weeks combined (I can use it however I like). But it is a 40k pay raise and less driving. I may ask if they can come up on the pto, however it is a union position so I am unsure if they are able to do that or not.
You have to calculate how much the monetary value of your PTO + sick leave for each job in relation to your hourly rate. Then add that to your yearly salary.
After calculating it, your original job yearly salary plus your PTO and sick leave is worth to you $89,846.15 and the new job with everything included is $105,769.23. A difference of $15,923.07
So you’re not really getting a $20k raise. You are getting a $15k raise.
As for me personally, I would also calculate how much gas I have to pay for a year if I am going into work. Then I would calculate my round trip weekly commute time and try to put a monetary value to my commute time. Because time is money.
Be honest and tell them you value your PTO and see if they will budge. If not, you could ask if they could increase their offer by 5-10K to accommodate.
Either way, if the new place will allow you to gain more experience and build your skills/resume, take the job and then find a new one a couple years later. You can likely find another job for more money and be picky about where you go based upon the benefits next time around.
I left a union job after 10 years for a 25K increase and position that will greatly boost my resume to cash in a couple years from now. You can always find an employer with great benefits once you are in a senior position and/or have a family and need the better benefits.
(4wk + 12d)-(2wk + 1wk)= 19d, it’s 19d for doing nothing.
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20k/19d/8hr=131$/hr, if you hourly wage is not far from 131$/hr then no reason to move plus you WFH now.
Whats you hourly wage?
Time off translates to hourly wages. If I get another day off, that’s another day of pay. Consider that in your pay difference.
Much less PTO and a commute? That’s a hell no. Money isn’t worth that, especially because you’re doing fine already.
How many years were you at your previous job? Most companies will negotiate an extra week.
Personally I’d stay. There’s a lot to be said for having a place that is flexible, working with a manager that treats you well, and being able to WFH. $20k won’t seem worth it if the new place ends up not meeting your expectations.
As someone who has been in a job with less than 10 PTO days a year ( no sick leave) for the past 2 years, you don’t realize how valuable time off from work is until you don’t have it.
I would ask first they could match 4 weeks of people. If not then try to negotiate to 3 weeks
A genuine question about the sick leave. How does it work? What happens if you get sick beyond the sick days? I’m working in the Netherlands and we don’t have such concept. Here if you get sick you get sick, you don’t have to proof anything. You just need to message your team lead in the morning saying I’m sick and that’s it. There’s no limit to it and you get paid always.