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<snip>
I'm referring to base salary, i.e., $40 per
hour W2 will equal +/- $?K.
</snip>
Roughly calculated, $40 per hour on a W2 (as a contractor with no benefits)
is about $80K in gross pay per year. That's 2000 work hours and allowing for
two weeks (80 hours) of vacation or sick time off. If you're looking for an
equivalent salary with benefits, I would guess that $60-70K would be in the
ballpark. What you don't get in cash every week, you get in paid time off,
maybe life insurance, and maybe 401K matching funds or profit sharing. All
of that factors in, so it may look like you're earning less money, but it's
actually about the same in the long run.
<snip>
Also, can a higher salary
be negotiated if health benefits are not needed (or is
that just my wishful thinking)?
</snip>
Negotiated higher salary that doesn't include health benefits? Maybe not.
However, you might have some options that will effectively raise the amount
of take-home pay you see in whatever final salary you land.
In most companies, you will probably be expected to pay all or part of the
premium for your healthcare benefits out of your pre-tax income. Some larger
companies may have different levels of healthcare coverage that you can
select from, and you may be able to opt out of the coverage entirely if
you're already covered under another plan. Depending on what level of
coverage you want and how much you want to spend, you can vary the amount of
money you see in your paycheck.
I had three choices for health insurance plans here--four if you count that
I could have chosen to opt out because we already have insurance through my
husband's job. Rather than opting out, I chose the least expensive option,
which doesn't cost much, but it pays for itself in our situation because
we're pretty much covered at 100% between the two plans.
If a company makes you an offer, they'll usually include a packet that
includes all of the stuff I just mentioned so you can take all of that into
account when deciding whether or not to take the job.
Good luck if you decide to job hunt!
Donna
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