Looking for a new job sometimes means scrolling through a whole lot of jobs that often sound like the worst thing in the universe. But like one might pan for gold, every once in a while, you’ll come across something truly special.
TikToker and creator Rea Michelle went viral when she shared what might be one of the most generous job postings out there. Netizens shared their thoughts and opinions in the comments section. We got in touch with Rea Michelle and she was kind enough to answer our questions.
More info: TikTok
More info: TikTok
Some companies could really learn a lesson on how to make a good job offer
Image credits: Jp Valery (not the actual photo)
"This is what a job offer should look like"
Image credits: CHANI
"Need to pay attention, big businesses, small, large corporations, wherever you are, if you have employees under your care, if you can afford it, this should be the blueprint, the gold standard. Salary floor, the floor is 80K. Meaning no one is paid less than that. Hashtag living wages for all."
"Fully covered health, dental, and vision insurance"
Image credits: Atikah Akhtar (not the actual photo)
"Okay, amazing. I mean, can we ask for more? Yes, we can. 401K with the 5% match. Yes, please. Thank you for retirement. Flexible work-from-home policy. This is it. Okay. This is the one that made me just gush. Alright. Flexible work-from-home policy. That is the dream. A four-day workweek. Yes, please and thank you. Seven weeks of paid office closure a year."
"Seven weeks and that is on top of having your sick leave and your paid time off leave. Most jobs don't even give you two weeks of paid off"
Image credits: Chen Mizrach (not the actual photo)
"Seven weeks of paid office closure a year. Seven weeks, baby, seven weeks off, and that is on top of having your sick leave and your paid time off leave. Most jobs don’t even give you two weeks of paid off."
"Four months of paid paternity leave"
Image credits: Aditya Romansa (not the actual photo)
"Ladies, come on, that's amazing. Unlimited flexible paid vacation plus a vacation stipend. Where do you hear that? What job do you know that does a vacation stipend? Can you imagine this? I cannot imagine it. Like, my brain is maybe in places that are not America, they offer this, but not here in the good ol’ US. Gender-based violence paid and protected leave. So if you're in one of those bad relationships where your partner has done bad things to you, you get paid for that and protected leave. This is like human decency. Like, what type of job does that?"
"Unlimited menstrual leave for people"
Image credits: Gregory Pappas (not the actual photo)
"Okay, this has to be fake. This- this job offer has to be fake. This cannot be real. But you guys, this is apparently a real job offer. Menstrual leave. Do you know how many times I had been balled up in bed not wanting to leave to go to work and I had to suck it up, take my pain pills and keep it moving and act like I'm okay at work? When I'm literally just suffering."
"Paying an annual tech stipend"
Image credits: Mimi Thian (not the actual photo)
"I don't know what that means. But stipend means money, right? Had to go Google it, basically it’s money for new tech. You get money for tech, guys. Computers, maybe phones, whatever. A personal growth and professional growth stipend. What does that mean? You get money for personal and professional growth. What? Can you imagine? Where is this job? If anybody knows, please let me know. Because I want to apply ASAP. I will move for this job. Stipend to help you build wealth. To help you build wealth, money to help me build wealth. Are you trying to help me build wealth? You're gonna let me get some stock offers or what? Please let me know. We all need to know. Okay?"
"But seriously, guys, okay, now, I'm not gonna lie. A lot of these are probably things people can't afford to do"
Image credits: Brooke Cagle (not the actual photo)
"Small businesses can't offer all of this, but you big, large corporations and big buck businesses? You definitely can afford to do that. If you take out some of those big bosses, they're making millions and billions a year. Oh, yeah, they might have to cut their salary to make it happen. But it can happen. You guys don't need to have all that much money, okay? Let some trickle down to your employees, the ones who are actually making you that money."
You can watch the full video here:
Some offers do seem too good to be true
Bored Panda got in touch with Rea Michelle and she was kind enough to answer our questions. First and foremost, we wanted to hear if she had any further thoughts on what made this particular offer stand out. "Well, to start, the salary floor offer is $80k per year for every single employee. This means you could be offered more, but no one would be offered less. They also offer a flexible work-from-home policy when most jobs are calling people to come back into the office."
"They have a four-day workweek, which is pretty much unheard of for any type of place of employment. They offer vacation, tech, and personal/professional growth stipends. And, my favorite part is that they offer unlimited menstrual leave for people with uteruses." A few commenters suggest that they would trade most of these benefits to make a bit more, so we wanted to hear her opinion on this idea.
"Personally, I think I would rather have the benefits because making more money won’t guarantee you happiness. Those benefits would truly make the job experience 10 times better. Having a job that cares about your mental, emotional, and physical well-being is truly unheard of these days."
Searching for a job is at times soul crushing
In general, her video sparked a discussion in the comments, so we were curious to hear what she thought of the thousands of opinions folks wrote in. "I was wondering the same thing myself, but I think it’s because it’s unheard of to see these types of benefits offered here in the US. It seems like a dream come true when a job offers amazing benefits plus fair pay, and they seem like they genuinely care about their employees."
"I think that more companies need to offer these types of benefits to their employees. I feel like most companies don’t really care about their employees. All they care about is the bottom line of making money and appeasing the shareholders. You know how some people keep saying nobody wants to work these days? If more companies offered these benefits, I’m pretty sure more people would LOVE to work these days."
"Also the job is very inclusive and supportive of marginalized communities. Here’s a direct quote from the CHANI company site. Folks who are queer, trans, non-binary, Black, Indigenous, people of color, disabled, parents, are/have been system-impacted, are immigrants, and anyone who has experienced systemic oppression and/or gender-based violence are encouraged to apply," she shared with Bored Panda. You can find her TikTok linked above. Rea Michelle also has an Instagram account and YouTube page.
It's no secret that many jobs now will make candidates go through a rigorous and, frankly, annoying set of tests, tasks, and interview rounds before even issuing an offer. Combine this with the unfortunate reality that most jobs are not quite as good as most of us would want and it's easy to see how fatigue can set in.
Imagine sitting in a job you hate, spending your lunch break scrolling the internet for alternatives, only to realize that you might have to push through weeks of uncertainty and unpaid tests just to maybe get hired. It's not hard to see how this would lead many folks to simply despair.
Image credits: Marten Bjork (not the actual photo)
Benefits are nearly as important as the salary
On the flip side, this does mean that companies that choose to offer good perks and benefits greatly stand out. The job listed above might end up getting considerably more applications than any similar roles at their competitors, allowing the hiring manager to really pick what they believe might be the ideal candidate.
This particular job posting is special, as it almost perfectly covers many of the things that people see as the most important benefits. Forbes reports that flexible working hours, retirement plans, and early leave on Fridays are among the most important. Given that the job in the video operates on a four-day week, it actually goes above and beyond what many would see as an ideal offer.
Some benefits are often overlooked because they are so common
In general, less common benefits like dental care, four (or fewer) day workweeks, and family-based health insurance top the lists of what people are looking for. While it might look like people value these over the “normal” benefits like 401k contributions, healthcare, and bonuses, the statistics might be a bit skewed.
After all, the “normal” things we have we tend to take for granted. This doesn’t mean they are less important by any stretch of the imagination. A job that offers dental care but not “regular” healthcare would be seen as strange and less desirable than one that “just” has healthcare. Of course, many Americans should note that, for example, Europeans often have access to public healthcare, on top of company-provided healthcare.
In general, the smorgasbord of benefits is what makes this particular job posting so desirable. While, for some, the salary isn’t necessarily that high, this combination of benefits seems almost unheard of. While healthcare and dental certainly cost the company a pretty penny, some benefits are practically free. Yes, a four-day workweek can conceivably impact productivity, but it’s an open secret that many people don’t work 40 hours a week, even if they technically have a 40-hour workweek.
Image credits: nrd (not the actual photo)
People shared their thoughts on this particular offer
