Tech Workers Consider Escaping Silicon Valley (Bloomberg)

Bloomberg in May 2020 on tech workers weighing a move out of the Bay Area as remote work took hold.

Why it was kept

Kyle kept the question the piece raises — if employees move somewhere cheaper, should companies like Twilio adjust their salaries — and its caution that whether workers actually leave for the countryside remains to be seen.

As Kyle captured it

• Read Tech Workers Consider Escaping Silicon Valley - Prosperable Remote Work
  • But the trend raises complicated questions. If employees move to a less expensive location, should Twilio adjust their salaries accordingly? “It’s probably not great business practice to pay Bay Area comps in Michigan,” Lake says. And when it comes time to promote, would those employees have the same opportunity to advance as everybody else? “We need to think proactively,” she says.
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  • Whether tech employees will actually start to leave the Valley for the rural countryside remains to be seen, and there are drawbacks to dialing in remotely on a permanent basis. In 2013, Yahoo Inc. decided its lax policies on working from home had prevented it from innovating and required everyone to come back to the office. But workplaces won’t be the same, even early next year. It may not be safe to gather dozens of employees in the same shuttle bus, serve them food with the same utensils, or sponsor off-site gatherings and holiday parties. “Once the reality takes hold, why would we live in SF?” Hecklau asks.