Offered to take a pay cut for more time off and got a surprising no

I asked my boss if I could drop to 32 hours a week for 80% of my salary at my admin job in Chicago. Thought it would be a win-win since I’d save them money. Instead, they said no because they wanted me “available” during full office hours. Has anyone else tried negotiating for reduced hours and hit a wall?

3 comments

3 Comments

pat_fisher2410d ago

My buddy tried this at a marketing firm in Austin and got the same hard no... they acted like he was asking to work from the moon or something. It's wild how companies would rather lose a good employee than bend a little on office hours. Makes you wonder if they really care about the work or just having bodies in chairs.

the_richard10d ago

Honestly I used to be one of those people who thought remote work was just people wanting to slack off. But seeing how hard companies push back on stuff like this totally changed my mind. It's like they're scared of giving up control even if the work gets done. Your buddy's experience sounds exactly like what I've heard from a bunch of people in different fields too. The whole "bodies in chairs" thing is real sad but makes total sense when you think about it. Nobody's gonna trade a good job for a little flexibility if they don't have to.

drewgonzalez10d ago

Did your buddy try proposing a trial run @the_richard? That worked for me once.