Forget pay cut, give me a raise to work remotely‍

Last week, I wrote about one of the most contentious topics with regards to working remotely. Is it fair to cut someone's pay if they are given the benefit to work remotely?

Almost everyone on DEV & Twitter was vocal against this calling it absolutely unfair & presenting a multitude of reasons as to why it makes no sense.

So I want to follow up with an appeal to every employer on why they should offer a pay raise for asking employees to work remotely.

1) Remote work = increased expenses. Pay more to cover those expenses.

Every company expects their employees to have top-notch work setup with minimal disturbance. Our homes are not made for that and we need to spend money for:

- Setting up a proper home office (table, chair, laptop stand etc.)

- Setting up primary & backup internet & power connection

- Additional bills for electricity, water, heating etc.

On the contrary, companies save huge costs on:

- Rent

- Power

- Internet

- Food

- Maintenance staff

2) Remote work = more hours & more work done. Pay more for the additional effort.

Take any survey conducted even in the middle of a global pandemic and you'll see higher numbers in productivity & work hours for remote vs. in-office (latest example - Reuters' survey). Numbers are even higher when we look at surveys pre Covid.

All of this presents a very strong inference: Remote work results in more work done in less time. If that's the case, companies must pay a higher compensation to remote employees.

3) Remote work = access to jobs across the world. Pay more to retain talent.

When you hire someone, you pay him/ her to do the job. The pay shouldn't change just because the employee is now getting the same job done from their home or elsewhere.

On the contrary, the ability to work remotely opens up an entire new set of jobs for remote workers. If you aren't going to compensate your remote employees fairly, they will switch to a company that fairly values their time, effort & skill.

Remote work is a serious competitive advantage for companies. Pay fair and trust your employees to make it work.