which job would you choose

[Westernskies]

I'd go with 2. Try to squeeze a few more $$ out of them if you can , but don't lose the opportunity. (they probably have salary guidelines they need to stay within for consistency with all their employees)

1 isn't a permanent position, and I would hate to think you're favoring this choice for the potential unemployment benefits...

Either way, you owe it to both employers and yourself to make this decison and move on.

My 2Cents, for free.

[ER_Hopeful]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Westernskies I'd go with 2. Try to squeeze a few more $$ out of them if you can , but don't lose the opportunity. (they probably have salary guidelines they need to stay within for consistency with all their employees) 1 isn't a permanent position, and I would hate to think you're favoring this choice for the potential unemployment benefits... Either way, you owe it to both employers and yourself to make this decison and move on. My 2Cents, for free.

#1 is a perm position but starting out as contractor.
I'd have many bosses I need to please in this.

[Westernskies]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ER_Hopeful #1 is a perm position but starting out as contractor. I'd have many bosses I need to please in this.

Why would they start you out as a contractor if this is a permanent position?

[ER_Hopeful]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Westernskies Why would they start you out as a contractor if this is a permanent position?

the reason they gave me was that it's a lot quicker to get me stared as a contractor than perm. the real reason I think is that many new hires don't last, those who can survive become perm.

[Westernskies]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ER_Hopeful the reason they gave me was that it's a lot quicker to get me stared as a contractor than perm. the real reason I think is that many new hires don't last, those who can survive become perm.

So, spin it any way they want, it's still an at-will contract position.

If they're not willing to make a commitment to you, why should you make a commitment to them?

#2, X2

[growing_older]

Depends on your state. Here when contracts end there is no unemployment.

[FreeAtLast]

it is your life, your decision. You got to meet, see and feel the work place of each of these companies. Be glad that you have 2 choices while so many others have none.
Pick the one that will send you home happy each day at a reasonable time and respect your personal time. Life is short and children grow up fast.

Remember that a company can be bought and sold and things can change and nothing lasts forever.

It sounds like option 2 is not a formal offer yet, so don't count on it yet.

Consider the commuting distance and any other expenses like parking etc. Gas is not cheap these days.

[Ally]

I would personally take #2. Money is important, but so is the environment.

[ER_Hopeful]

deleted for now.

[mnopqr]

can you give us an update??

[ER_Hopeful]

Quote:

Originally Posted by mnopqr can you give us an update??

Sure.

I wanted to try out #1 first since #2's offer would not be effective until they had completed certain tasks. So I went to sign all I9/w4 with #1 last thur morning, by the time I walked out of their office, i got voicemail from #2 that everything went thru and offer would now be effective and ask for a start date. (this is where I screwed up. I should have told them I need to reconsider but instead I agree to start in 2 weeks. chickened out again)

My conscience had been eating alive throughout the weekend, by Sun morning, I couldn't bear it anymore so I emailed #2 stating that my status with them may change and they'll get update from me by Mon evening.

Went to work at #1 monday, all is well. yes, it's another mega corp, it's certainly no family atmosphere but hey it's $30k difference and people there don't really work crazy like I had imaged. It's really fast paced. [I just got my machine/development environment all set up today(Wed.) and they expect to give me my first(minor) bug fix tomorrow, as a way to get my feet wet.] Thoughout Monday, I had my cell phone turned off in anticipation that #2 would be calling me.

walked out of the office at 6 PM Monday, checked voice mail and yes #2 left msg questioning my status. Called #2 and gave my sincere apologies. I've never felt so bad about my conduct as a professional. #2 hiring manager was very disappointed and upset, I could tell. We had very good rapport. I felt like a runaway groom. He had a lot faith in me. all I could utter out was I'm sorry... I felt we could have been really good friends if we worked together but I wanted the extra $$$.

so it's been an emotional rollercoaster for me the past few days.

I'm here to stay with #1 for good. If I have good performance, I could be converted to full time in 1 or 2 month's time. It's no walk in the park but not mission impossible either.

Thanks for keeping track of my little story everyone. I really look forward to the day when I don't have to answer to anyone anymore.

[Isadora]

There is a saying in Hungarian that roughly translates to: If I keep my mouth shut, my head won't hurt.

I bet, by now you too are wondering what possessed you to be so quick in having to convey the facts. If you really felt that great about the fellow at #2, having a cup of coffee with him as a friend, would have gone a long way to have him understand that it was not personal but cash has a loud voice in this day and age.

In any case, you can not go back and change anything so tuck the lesson under your belt and more on without giving any more of your energy away to something behind you. Good luck.

[Webzter]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Westernskies Why would they start you out as a contractor if this is a permanent position?

Contract to hire, especially in technology, can be a fairly common thing. Hiring is expensive and takes a long time. Hiring wrong is even more expensive (build a case to fire, even if you're in an at-will state, start process all over again)

Most companies (at least that I've worked for/with/talked to/etc) generally won't post as contract to hire (they'll just get a contractor instead) if they don't truly intend to convert it to a perm position... of course, intend to and actual don't always pan out and one should judge their risk/reward accordingly.

I also know contracts who have taken C2H positions with no thought of actually switching perm; it was just the easiest path to billable hours.

YMMV and all that.

I am hopeful for the OP with the decision he made. Having worked at a megacorp on a big dotcom project where I didn't see less than 110 hour weeks, I'm nervous for him.. but that was at the start of the project and not after things were already running.