how remote work is changing tech salaries

Have tech salaries changed and is remote work playing a part?

Penny Dower Hunt, 19 February 2021.

If there is anything the world learned during the first wave of the Covid-19 pandemic is that remote work hasn't been getting as much credit as it should. As the number of infected people increased in the United States and a lockdown was initiated, 66 percent of employees worked from home.

According to the research by Smallbiztrends, this reflected a 17 percent surge in the number of remote workers before the virus. Out of this number, 40 percent are fully satisfied with working from home.

Another 39 percent said they prefer to work in offices. The rest were indifferent about working from home compared to working in the office.

Tech experts have the biggest slice of the cake

The demand for tech workers has increased significantly this year because of the coronavirus pandemic. Technological innovation has been the theme of the Covid-19 pandemic. Researchers have been working closely with developers to come up with a sustainable solution to pandemic-related problems. Thankfully, a viable vaccine has been found and is now being distributed.

As the demand for tech experts increased, their salaries surged as well. Software engineers working for major companies like Google, Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn have been earning a significantly higher amount of money in recent times.

Even independent software engineers have cashed out incredible amounts of cash for their valuable contributions across sectors. This might be a good time to learn how to become a software engineer.

The heart of technology companies, Silicon Valley, California, has always been an expensive place to live. As the virus started to spread, engineers were asked to work from home and many of them saw this as an opportunity to relocate to more affordable states.

To prevent its best minds from fleeing, Facebook and other tech firms might slash tech salaries in their companies to match the cost of living in their newfound cities.

Salary Structure in the Tech Industry in the Coronavirus Era

All over the world, tech companies pay their workers well for their innovative minds and exceptional skills. However, Silicon Valley is the hub that pays the highest amount. As of last year, the average Silicon Valley developer earned $145,000.

While those who continued to stay in the Bay Area during the outbreak got more money or higher salaries this year, those who didn't stay were faced with salary cuts of 10 percent and higher.

The logic behind this is that moving to a place with a lower cost of living automatically means that you don't need as much money anymore.

Stripe Inc has agreed to offer remote workers who want to relocate a mega one-time relocation bonus of $20,000 if they decide to move to a cheaper city. However, the workers will have to agree to a pay cut of up to 10 percent. You might think 10 percent is too much but VMware Inc is cutting salaries by up to 18 percent for anyone who moves from Silicon Valley to Denver.

These companies claim that matching salaries to local cost of living is a standard procedure across industries.

Tech companies in the Valley have always cuddled their workers but their threats of relocation-based salary cuts have led to a lot of friction between employers and employees. This friction might affect the delicate balance that exists in Silicon Valley.

Workers in Silicon Valley love their fat salaries and they are not ready to give it up yet. Companies hope that the threat of a substantial pay cut will serve as a deterrent against leaving the Valley.

Will remote jobs in the Tech Industry remain the norm?

As stated above, a viable vaccine to protect people from the coronavirus pandemic has finally been developed by Pfizer/BioNtech. The United Kingdom has approved 40 million doses of the vaccine to be distributed to residents. So far, more than 43,000 people have taken the vaccine without displaying any negative side effects.

While they continue to search for a more effective treatment for the virus, the vaccine will help prevent more people from getting infected. This means that they can return to their day jobs.

However, tech experts can do as much work at home as they can from the office. So, the vast majority of tech workers may continue to work from home.

Conclusion

The coronavirus may have come with a lot of negativity and consequences, but it has helped the world to adopt a more flexible approach to remote work and the gig economy.