• Sole Purpose of Visit (unregistered)

    If the intent of these amateur puff pieces is to make each and every reader loathe and despise Hired with every fiber of their being, then you'll be happy to know that it Works For Me. Which seems odd, really, because otherwise my reaction to Just Another Recruitment Company would be "meh ..."

    Don't these people have actual trained professionals in the field of Marketing Communications to push a more polished form of this guff out?

  • David-T (unregistered)

    You seem to have missed about 6 continents from your spam^Wsponsored advertisement^Warticle.

  • Pjrz (unregistered) in reply to David-T

    Don't be silly. Those continents don't really exist. They're just a myth made up by the Man to keep the oppressed masses down-trodden and hungry while boosting the profits of the big companies.

  • MiserableOldGit (unregistered)

    Yaaawwwwwwnnnn

    Is there really no other material?

  • someone (unregistered) in reply to David-T

    By my calculations (i.e. probably horribly wrong), that picture misses approximately 6.5988284777 continents. So more like "about 7".

    And with regards to the whole health insurance thing: can't say that's much of an issue, as I have few doubts that the majority of the problem there is living in the USA rather than working freelance. Just a hunch.

  • someone (unregistered)

    Hang on, just noticed that Ireland isn't in that image either.

    Oh well, can't be bothered to redo my calculations. It probably makes little difference.

  • boatymcboatface (unregistered)

    They aren't very good at visuals, these sponsors. There is a bar graph with two data sets represented by a black column and a red column. But where is the key? What does black represent, and what does red represent? Is it US/UK or male/female? Can't be role as there are more than 2.

  • Brian (unregistered)

    Hmm... I'm in Atlanta, which is supposedly a huge player in multiple tech industries, but it's not even a blip on their map? Maybe that would explain why they never bothered to contact me after I signed up on their website.

  • someone (unregistered) in reply to boatymcboatface

    I'm guessing it's freelance vs not freelance. But yes, I had a similar concern with regards to poorly-labelled graphs.

  • Dude (unregistered) in reply to boatymcboatface

    Apparently it's preferred rate (red) vs offered rate (black). Still a valid point, but considering the exact graphic used in the article isn't found anywhere in the report, I'll personally believe TRWTF is Remy for ostensibly putting it together.

  • Just Another Developer (unregistered)

    TRWTF is the map renaming Leicester to London.

  • Derp (unregistered)

    You really can tell that Hired is run and staffed entirely by failed recruiters.

  • JG (unregistered) in reply to Just Another Developer

    At least the map is correct as to where the UK will be towed to after Brexit

  • MiserableOldGit (unregistered) in reply to JG

    Well it forgot London will try and stay behind. I see stocks are soaring in manufacturers of really big angle grinders.

  • Pjrz (unregistered) in reply to Just Another Developer

    Oh yes, never even noticed at first glance that London has moved several miles to the north. I never even saw it go past.

  • Da expert (unregistered) in reply to Just Another Developer

    And Chicago lost its seafront view

  • Stephen Cleary (unregistered)

    $4,700/year? Wow, must be nice!

    The cheapest family PPO plan for 2018 in my state is more than $15,000/yr. And of course you need dental, too (over $1,300/yr). Oh, and the health plan has a $14,700 deductible, so of course they don't really pay for anything other than your yearly checkups...

  • Ross (unregistered)

    Maybe it's time to give up on TDWTF for good, if it requires Remy spending several hours writing bullshit adverts like this.

  • RLB (unregistered)

    Nice advertisement. Is there also going to be an article today?

  • ArrghMatey (unregistered)

    contrractor = pirate contractor

  • John (unregistered)

    So let's do the math from the article

    Hourly rate 100 Average hours per week 22 Number of working weeks a year. 52 Total average pay a year. 114,000

    Hum. Starting engineers in seattle make more than that

  • TheCPUWizard (unregistered)

    Yes, if you are brought in to fix a WTF, then (hopefully) it is not a WTF anymore...More often you are brought in to work with X and then find that there is a WTF named Y.....

    "I’m at their site often enough that the front-desk clerk at the hotel invited me to her wedding." - The unknown WTF is that you are invited as the GROOM.

  • No Fun (unregistered) in reply to John

    But starting engineers in Seattle don't get to work only 22 hour weeks...

  • Really? (unregistered)

    Just how does it work to contract an engineering manager? (Don't say "poorly".) Long term contracts only?

  • I'm Okay With This (unregistered)

    These sponsored articles are probably taking Remy's time away from writing every other post in his "I'm the smartest man in every room" tone. More sponsorship!

  • Tim! (unregistered) in reply to Da expert

    And Seattle moved down to Longview; this map puts it closer to Portland than to the Puget Sound.

  • Tim! (unregistered) in reply to Stephen Cleary

    $4700/year for an individual vs. $15k for a family: sounds to me like your second kid is covered for nearly free.

  • Milo (unregistered)

    The real WTF is that your site certificate is expired. I had to click through a big scary warning to get here.

  • Ulysses (unregistered)

    I think you've all misread the title. The entity known as Hired is contracting... in size! It splains the map. It splains everything.

  • Zenith (unregistered)

    Love to see that big red circle around my area yet Hired has no jobs and the contract work that is available here peters out at not even a third of those rates.

    The state of contracting is a clusterfuck. The quality of work that I've seen from many contractors, and been forced to produce when working as one, isn't worth minimum wage. It's just incredible that organizations are willing to pay so much for so little. Yet, if you're actually good, there is zero opportunity outside of maybe developing your own retail product completely divorced from any employee-employer relationship. Organizations want to see bodies and paperwork. They want the skilled people as far away from the work as possible and do anything to make that situation happen. Then everybody's surprised that nothing works at premium prices.

  • Doppel Frog (google) in reply to John

    Why only 22 hours/week? Surely it's more like: $100/hr * 8 hrs * 5 days * 50 weeks = $2000000

  • snoofle (unregistered) in reply to Doppel Frog

    For the ten years before I retired, I was making $125-150/hr on a fixed 40 hour week (50 weeks/yr) at most places. One place forked over $140/hr and WTF Inc paid $225/hr. A few paid hourly, plus for >40, which made for some huge paychecks.

    The downside is health insurance costs me $15000/yr (NJ) out of pocket, and you are self-funding vacation, sick time, no paid holidays and training costs to keep current.

    Of course, in the US, as an independent consultant (e.g.: incorporated), you also need to pay double social security + medicare tax, and file a small mountain of tax forms for your corporation throughout the year.

    But saving the $ above what I'd normally have made as an employee (as I did for ten years) let me retire 8 years before I was planning to retire.

  • Apollyon (unregistered)

    The real WTF is that half of this article is advertisement and my adblock didn't actually block it.

  • dan (unregistered) in reply to Doppel Frog

    It's more like $100/hr * 11 hours * 6 days * 17 weeks = $112k. With the remainder of the year spent looking for your next contract.

  • RLB (unregistered) in reply to Zenith

    The state of contracting is meant to be a clusterfuck, from the self-employed contractor's POV. The entire system is set up for the benefit of contracting agencies and large employers, not for that of single employees or small businesses.

  • Anon (unregistered) in reply to boatymcboatface

    How was it not obvious that the bars are the low/high pay for the low/high years in each experience category, with the spread displayed above them?

  • Anon (unregistered) in reply to snoofle

    Don't forget tools!

    Employees get tools for free, contractors MIGHT get a license, otherwise they get to spend $100-5000 every time they need a new tool for the job, or for a specific client's system.

  • WonkoTheSane (unregistered)

    Did we move London because of flood risk on the Thames?

    It will make the commute a bit easier now that its just south of Birmingham.

    One request though, next could we move Manchester to somewhere warm? :)

  • MiserableOldGit (unregistered) in reply to WonkoTheSane

    I prefer it moved somewhere completely inhospitable so I never, ever, get asked to go there in my life again, ever.

    Reduced Old Traffod to uninhabitable rubble would be an unintended bonus.

  • (nodebb)

    I know some of the job agents in Hong Kong offers enrollment for medical benefits under the name of their company (people go for this offer will need to pay the insurance themselves, but joining a corporate plan usually means you get greater discount on then finding one yourself) when people were hired as contractor through them. And sometimes this offer is even better then the ones offer by companies choosing a cheaper plan. (Say, some may require you to pay the first HKD30 of doctor consultation fee, but the plan offered by them do not) Not sure if this is a special deal with insurance company or they're doing that without acknowledging the insurance company.

    So if you add the price tag when you considering about the salary offered, the lack of benefits offered by the company may not be a CON anymore.

    Addendum 2017-10-22 00:39: you get greater discount on then -=> you get greater discount than

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