3 points for "€100k or more" already sounds like bullshit to me at this time.
Either that or I would love to hear what you do !
Either that or I would love to hear what you do !
This is all from the perspective of a "Software Engineer", most of what you said would definitely apply to a lower wage job, but not something that's specialized and in demand.
What definitely does factor in is cost of living. The rents i saw listed in some comments are 3 to 4 times lower then what I'm paying in NYC. Also general cost of living outside of that is far cheaper from the numbers I see listed, though that's harder to compare because I don't know how other commenters live, for example I eat out mostly, cook once in awhile. But, I know it's definitely possible to live more cheaply then I do and still end up alright, though it would require more sacrifices (i.e. I can imagine spending half of what I do in rent and general costs and still get by ok).
In short, yah there are differences, but I don't think the main ones are what you listed.
After a certain point the cost of rent maxes out, especially if your a single person with roommates. Also the US has lower tax rates. If you wanted to be really optimal in total profits and not move to a developing country you might work in austin, seattle or even las vegas with no state income tax and far more affordable rents.
The only thing left is 2 or 3 more weeks in vacation time, which if you adjust on a $/hour basis, the SFBA still comes out ahead. It is definitely enviable, but there are companies out there that would be fine with you taking equivalent unpaid vacations or working remotely for weeks at a time.
Jein :) The cost for social security is split roughly 50/50 between employee and employer.
The basic point about more holidays is true in germany as well: I know people that have 30 or even 35 days (7 weeks) of holidays. Then there's public holidays that are paid as well in germany (up to 14 per year, depending on where you live) etc.
My basic point was that it's very hard to compare salaries only by looking at the raw figures since the benefits guaranteed or given voluntarily differ massively.
It depends, e.g. in Belgium part of it is paid by your employer on top of your pre-tax wage, and a (larger) part is deducted from your pre-tax salary. Don't ask me why.
I think you're right to point out that there's two different – though obviously related – questions to ask: (a) are companies paying less? and (b) is individual taxation higher?
Almost tempted to apply... ;-)