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Why don't you move abroad?

(orkohunter.net)
189 points orkohunter | 5 comments | 20 Nov 24 08:23 UTC | HN request time: 1.551s | source
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0xEF ◴[20 Nov 24 09:41 UTC] No.42192236[source]▶
Being in the US, my career is unfortunately the center of my universe because I rely on having it to afford literally anything else. The system here is one build on dependency, and just like in any abusive relationship, they make it very, very hard for us to leave. Our lives are about our jobs, so things like healthcare and taxation are all inextricably ties to our employers. It's not long before you start to realize you are sort of stuck with this unless you have people elsewhere or want to roll the dice on an open visa for a year in a place like Albania, hoping that in that year you get set up enough to either stay or go somewhere else.

Debt is another factor. If you're born in the US, odds are you have accrued some debt, be it student loans, credit card, housing or auto loans, etc. this requires you to have a job offering a wage that can (barely) keep up with paying off said debt. Keep in mind debt is an industry here, so once you're in it, you're in it unless you are lucky enough to have been born into some level of moderate or higher wealth.

Oh, and income? Yeah, you need to know to how code to get a remote job with the flexibility to work anywhere in the world. Maybe you get lucky with a sales job, but for that you need to be bilingual. If you grew up in the US, you were not encouraged to pursue either of those skills until very recently. Couple that with your competition in a global job market is going to be a lot steeper that what you might find in a domestic market.

If we take a Moon-eye view of the US, it's almost as though a system has been created intentionally to keep people stuck there. Many of us would love nothing more than to experience the world beyond our borders, but by the time we are 30, we are so shackled by this system that it leaving for anything more than our allotted 2 weeks annual vacation seems like a crazy risk.

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askl ◴[20 Nov 24 09:47 UTC] No.42192267[source]▶
Why don't you move abroad?
replies(1): >>42192538 #
1. 0xEF ◴[20 Nov 24 10:28 UTC] No.42192538[source]▶
I am not sure if you are making a joke, sorry. If so, well done.

Otherwise, if I did not do a good job of explaining, I can elaborate further on any points that are not fully understood. This is something my wife and I have been considering for years, even prior to America's new experiment with fascism, but there are intrinsic barriers aplenty unless you have a very specific skill set, money, or want to do the Peace Corps thing. Despite what the global community may think about US privilege, it is not so easy for us to just leave.

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2. nickd2001 ◴[20 Nov 24 11:16 UTC] No.42192806[source]▶
Handful of thoughts. :) The best of the 3 above is having a specific skill set. Anything medical - e:g nursing (good one 'cos less time to retrain) is in short supply worldwide and you can get a local job with visa sponsorship many places. As for experimenting with fascism, USA is sadly by no means the only country going that direction, and the USA's political system may be more resilient to such take-overs, guess we will find out... :( Other countries do have the advantage of not having healthcare tied to employer, people work less hours a lot of countries. The USA's mere 2 weeks a year vacation is brutal, no wonder so many people are burned out, but there are ways to get more e:g work for better employers such as public sector, or do short-term contracts.
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3. b3ing ◴[20 Nov 24 14:03 UTC] No.42194012[source]▶
The US requires 0 days off nationally, not sure where you got 2 weeks. I had a job once where we only got 5 days off but had to be there a year first. It was the best IT job I could get at the time.
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4. nickd2001 ◴[20 Nov 24 15:23 UTC] No.42194666{3}[source]▶
Wow that's even worse :( I got the impression at the time I worked there that 2 weeks was standard, at least in tech. Which didn't seem at all generous...
5. 0xEF ◴[20 Nov 24 17:23 UTC] No.42196172{3}[source]▶
Not a requirement, no, but certainly a selling point when shopping for a new job.

Personally, I am not a fan of the whole PTO system we have here, mostly because it is used against us. We are expected to be at work unless we request PTO, and we end up having to use PTO for things like doctor appointments and seeing our kid graduate, or whatever. It's an absurd joke.

I don't want PTO, and I realize that's an unpopular opinion, but it comes from years of seeing its abuse by employers who think they command our time (and the employees who allow them to).

What I want is simple; if I am at work, pay me, if I am not at work, do not pay me. That's it. That would keep both sides honest. I need to plan/budget for days off and can't game a system. Employers can't hold me hostage and need to look for better ways to incentivize employees to choose to be at work.