Some Job Perks Are Better Than Salary

As common readers of this column know, I’m an enormous fan of “The Workplace,” which I watch nearly each day. In a single episode, the principle character (Michael Scott) tries to clarify that wage isn’t all the pieces in a job and that typically job perks could make up for a decrease wage. Though the issues that the principle character factors to as being job perks which are higher than larger wage are laughable, many job perks could make up for being paid much less. The obvious job perk that may offset wage is the power to work remotely, however there are others.

Journey

I as soon as labored at a job that required me to be on the highway about 80% of my time with a purpose to attend court docket conferences, depositions, and different appearances. I spent over 70 nights a 12 months in lodges, and the remainder of the time I used to be out of the workplace at appearances near my house. Whereas touring, I had all of my bills — meals, airfare, lodge prices, and so forth — reimbursed by the agency’s shoppers.

The worth of all these reimbursements might simply be within the tens of 1000’s of {dollars}. Having my meals reimbursed was an enormous perk; I like to eat, and I typically had meals at nice eating places on my shoppers’ dime. When it got here to lodges, airfare, and different prices, I’d put this all on my bank card earlier than being reimbursed and earned bank card factors value 1000’s of {dollars} in worth. I additionally earned rewards factors from lodges and airways in order that I might journey extensively without cost by myself. Furthermore, the entire journey was enjoyable since I obtained to satisfy new individuals and be away from the workplace.

In fact, legal professional journey has been considerably lowered within the post-COVID world of showing just about. Nevertheless, you probably have the chance to work at a job that requires journey, it would warrant accepting a decrease wage in return.

Out-Of-Workplace Expertise

I can get a bit stir loopy, and I don’t like being in an workplace. Not solely is sitting in a single place and dealing for an prolonged interval troublesome for me, I don’t all the time prefer to see my bosses after we are all compelled to share an workplace collectively. Earlier in my profession, I labored at a job that required me to attend court docket conferences all around the metropolis near the place I lived three or 4 instances per week. I additionally needed to take a deposition each week or two, attend website inspections, maintain shopper conferences, and fulfill different obligations that saved me out of the workplace for lengthy durations.

Whereas working at this job, I often would spend my mornings in court docket, principally sitting round with individuals I knew from previous court docket experiences, having a enjoyable time with acquaintances from across the courthouse. I usually wouldn’t return to the workplace till round lunch, after which I solely wanted to spend a quick time within the workplace earlier than heading house on the finish of the day. If I attended a deposition or one other longer court docket look, I’d often head house if I couldn’t be again on the workplace by midafternoon. More often than not that I billed was attributable to appearances, so I spent a lot much less time on the extra boring duties like coping with discovery and drafting movement papers. Once more, there are fewer jobs like this within the post-COVID world, however legal professionals may take into account taking much less cash for such a job.

All informed, Michael Scott is probably going proper, and cash isn’t the one factor that may inspire individuals to simply accept sure jobs. In some circumstances, job perks can persuade a lawyer to simply accept a place that pays much less.

Jordan Rothman is a accomplice of The Rothman Law Firm, a full-service New York and New Jersey regulation agency. He’s additionally the founding father of Student Debt Diaries, a web site discussing how he paid off his pupil loans. You’ll be able to attain Jordan by means of e-mail at jordan@rothman.law.