RE: Compensation for commuting? was RE: seating arrangements

Subject: RE: Compensation for commuting? was RE: seating arrangements
From: "Sean Brierley" <sbri -at- haestad -dot- com>
To: "TECHWR-L" <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- raycomm -dot- com>
Date: Thu, 11 Jul 2002 13:57:16 -0400


You are comparing your apples to my oranges <vbg>.

The issue in this thread is not under what conditions the employee
agreed to work. If you agree to the commute, as I have to my 50-minute
jaunt, then so be it.

However, the original poster went from a short commute and 4-day work at
home to a 90-minute one-way commute. By making that _change_, the
employer has increased the employee's costs (to the tune of $5-10,000,
by my guess) and has _also_ increased the employee's work hours from an
assumed 8/day to 11/day.

So, in addition to losing $5-10,000 per year in pay for commuting
expenses, the employee in question has also had their per-hour wage
diluted because of the additional 38% increase in work hours.

That is, to keep things equitable and not even to include the
lunch-table work environment, I'd estimate the employer should increase
the poster's salary to 138% and then add $5-10,000 per year. In my
opinion, it is abusive to change somebody's working conditions so
much--but, then, if you want to eat I guess you have to suck it up. (It
is conditions like these that cause powerless employees to form unions,
remember.) Not good, all-around.

Cheers,

Sean

-----------------------------------------
Sean Brierley
Software Documentation Specialist
Haestad Methods
http://www.haestad.com
203-805-0572 (voice)
203-597-1488 (fax)



-----Original Message-----
From: Amy Smith/Westford/IBM [mailto:amy_smith -at- us -dot- ibm -dot- com]
Sean Brierly wrote:

<snip>
...I did an 85-mile, 90-minute commute when I was first getting
into technical writing as a college intern. If I did it today, I'd
expect to be compensated for it.
</snip>

If you were a contractor, perhaps that expectation is reasonable.

Not so for full-time employees. I choose to live in the town where I do
for any number of reasons - schools, cultural activities, whatever. I
chose to take a job 35 miles away. I can't expect my employer to
compensate me because I choose to live where to do. You pick where you
live, and you pick where you work.

<snip>

The expectation for a full-time employee is that you are paid your
salary
for a certain number of hours per week. The number of hours spent
getting
to the job does not factor into it.

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