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Comment by not-much-io | Hacker News Reader

I work for a international company, mainly based in the US. I get paid what a local developer gets paid, our chinese employees get paid what the local norm is there etc. Do other companies just outright decide salary based on where the company HQ is?

Call me cynical, but I'm a bit skeptical that a company would pay more than they had to.

Note: Assuming of course your role is not super vital for the whole company or some such.

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If you are as valuable as a local developer, then they will pay you as such. It's a business. They pay for value.

And no, your salary/rate isn't defined by where the company HQ is. That part defines their price tolerance. The price is defined primarily by how much you ask for and what you can offer in return.

I doubt this, if there's a chance other local devs might then ask for more.

> The price is defined primarily by how much you ask for and what you can offer in return.

I couldn't agree more. I know a lot of developers that have the mentality to just accept what they are offered without negotiating. It's up to you to get a good price for the value you bring to the company. Negotiation is the best way to significantly increase your salary, regardless of your technical skills.

Patio said it best: http://www.kalzumeus.com/2012/01/23/salary-negotiation/

Its set by supply and demand. You need competitive markets to reach your value.

If you have no other opportunities and no one is offering anything better than you have to accept that. Than they capture the rest of the value.

> Call me cynical, but I'm a bit skeptical that a company would pay more than they had to.

I think it also depends on the type of company and what they are after -- are they looking to save money by outsourcing or are they looking to expand their talent pool? If they are looking to expand their talent pool, it is more likely to get closer to what the company HQ is, minus some "remote work" discount.

After all, if I'm the manager of some San Francisco tech. company and I can get a great programmer (even by San Francisco standards) for a 20% discount to local talent, which I know is a 20-30% rate above what they programmer will be paid in their community in a fly over state -- it's win-win for everyone involved and they are much less likely to leave.

> Call me cynical, but I'm a bit skeptical that a company would pay more than they had to.

Companies will not pay more than they have to, but if you demonstrate your worth they will be happy to pay it.

I make high six figures and am completely location independent.

High six figures as in close to seven figures? As a programmer?

No, more like the >$200k range.

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