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Old 07-18-2018, 02:06 PM
 
13,811 posts, read 27,381,906 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by phaelon56 View Post
Yes and no. A recruiter just contacted her again about a 6 to 12 month contract job that is for state government. The job has been open at $35 per hour for over six months, yet it remains unfilled. That's because they aren't willing to pay enough, yet they won't compromise on the candidate requirements. She's overqualified for the position, but if they bump it up by $5 or $10 per hour she'll probably take it - just for the sake of getting back to work.
$5/hr is just $500 more a month after taxes/deductions. I dunno, maybe I'm weird but I have taken $70k a year pay cut in the past for a job (left one for another) with better potential down the line so I don't understand people bickering over such neglgible amounts.

You say she wouldn't take $40k in a previous post but would take $70k. Well, that is around $35/hr.

So your posts don't really make sense.

A lot of times companies uses contract workers to get a feel and then convert them over later to full time.
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Old 07-18-2018, 02:13 PM
 
Location: Northeast Raleigh, NC
845 posts, read 1,684,308 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by hey_guy View Post
I consider tech writer *something* of a dinosaur position in IT not aligned to modern practices so I think if your partner had a secure position this is a risk that should of been understood before doing the move. I work for a large company here 3k employees and we don't have tech writers. We DO have a communications department. But our IT department DOES NOT have tech writers

I'm not trying to give you a hard time but other factors such as endemic age discrimination (though your wife isn't that old) but also something like a senior position would typically be filled by a promotion in the shop I don't see why your wife doesn't take a job.

45k is way more money than 0 professionals aren't going to begrudge someone leaving for more money later.
I jumped onto this thread only because it had *some*relevance to her position. Her bailiwick is not IT but the companies she has worked for, and companies in that sector (technology related manufacturing) have internal Communications departments that use tech writers and illustrators. Someone has to fill that space between Engineering and Marketing when documentation such as instructions for use or user guides has to be produced. Some industry sectors, such as defense contracting and medical devices (she has worked in both,) are heavily regulated, and documentation is required that meets all of the contract criteria and the Federal regulations. She was actually in a senior management position when we left NY State, but a death in the family and other circumstances have prompted her to seek a position in which she can just focus on her original core skill set (that being said - she's a fantastic manager, which I know from having talked to many people who worked under her.)

It will happen. The $35 hourly has zero benefits. She can do free lance contract work at $75 to $85 per hour (and she has been doing some to keep busy,)but that's a constant grind.... finding clients and keeping the next jobs coming in. At this point the first decent position where someone offers temp to perm or a long term contract at $40+ - she will grab it. We're not financially stressed. If need be, we could live on my salary and benefits alone, but she is restless. She has worked, gone to school, and raised a family (often all three at the same time) since she was 16 - with no breaks ever (apart from holidays and a week of vacation here and there.) Now she is antsy, but I'm encouraging her to give it just a bit more time. I still think she should find a real-for-real professional headhunter who is well connected, instead of dealing with cold call recruiters who find her on LinkedIn, Monster, Indeed, etc.
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Old 07-18-2018, 02:26 PM
 
13,811 posts, read 27,381,906 times
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If she is living with your benefits why would it matter if her contract job has benefits?
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Old 07-18-2018, 03:44 PM
 
2,843 posts, read 2,963,649 times
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I think fundamentally we don’t have the sort of types of industries that would create demand for your wife’s skills. They way you talk I could picture her at Boeing or yeah manufacturing.

I’m sure IBM has tech writers but they are getting a lot of content out of their developers and using more informal styles. It’s a few big fish problem

I think if she re aligned to more pure marketing and communication she would go farther

Maybe places like quintiles but then they prob want actual research experience same problem with ipreo
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Old 07-19-2018, 11:56 AM
 
Location: Northeast Raleigh, NC
845 posts, read 1,684,308 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by wheelsup View Post
If she is living with your benefits why would it matter if her contract job has benefits?
There is a degree of uncertainty about the long term stability of my employer (they are not in NC.) We'll feel more comfortable if we have more options. Red Hat, Cisco, and dozens of other companies locally all use tech writers in some way, shape or fashion. The fact that she has had several dozen offers (all very low ball) indicates that people are in fact using tech writers, even if that doesn't seem evident to people on the outside.
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Old 07-19-2018, 12:40 PM
 
13,811 posts, read 27,381,906 times
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I totally can understand wanting a job with benefits.

Maybe there is an abundance of tech writers down here. Maybe she was overpaid in her previous positions. Maybe the jobs here are low level entry level jobs. Sometimes it just takes time to find a good job. Also the longer you remain out of employment the harder it is to get another similar position.
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Old 07-19-2018, 02:23 PM
 
9,265 posts, read 8,232,899 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by phaelon56 View Post
I jumped onto this thread only because it had *some*relevance to her position. Her bailiwick is not IT but the companies she has worked for, and companies in that sector (technology related manufacturing) have internal Communications departments that use tech writers and illustrators. Someone has to fill that space between Engineering and Marketing when documentation such as instructions for use or user guides has to be produced. Some industry sectors, such as defense contracting and medical devices (she has worked in both,) are heavily regulated, and documentation is required that meets all of the contract criteria and the Federal regulations. She was actually in a senior management position when we left NY State, but a death in the family and other circumstances have prompted her to seek a position in which she can just focus on her original core skill set (that being said - she's a fantastic manager, which I know from having talked to many people who worked under her.)

It will happen. The $35 hourly has zero benefits. She can do free lance contract work at $75 to $85 per hour (and she has been doing some to keep busy,)but that's a constant grind.... finding clients and keeping the next jobs coming in. At this point the first decent position where someone offers temp to perm or a long term contract at $40+ - she will grab it. We're not financially stressed. If need be, we could live on my salary and benefits alone, but she is restless. She has worked, gone to school, and raised a family (often all three at the same time) since she was 16 - with no breaks ever (apart from holidays and a week of vacation here and there.) Now she is antsy, but I'm encouraging her to give it just a bit more time. I still think she should find a real-for-real professional headhunter who is well connected, instead of dealing with cold call recruiters who find her on LinkedIn, Monster, Indeed, etc.
I have no idea what the typical salary is for tech writers, but in my IT-related field, a typical salary would be around 45-55/hour for mid-senior level person. Freelancing, that would be well over 100/hour.

The reality is, none of us can say why she's being offered what she is. Could be the going rate in the Triangle, could be other more personal factors.
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Old 08-02-2018, 04:05 AM
 
Location: Raleigh, NC
379 posts, read 747,509 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by phaelon56 View Post
Red Hat ... all use tech writers
We do, but they are not in Raleigh. They are in mostly in Australia.
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Old 08-02-2018, 10:10 AM
 
Location: Northeast Raleigh, NC
845 posts, read 1,684,308 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by m378 View Post
I have no idea what the typical salary is for tech writers, but in my IT-related field, a typical salary would be around 45-55/hour for mid-senior level person. Freelancing, that would be well over 100/hour.

The reality is, none of us can say why she's being offered what she is. Could be the going rate in the Triangle, could be other more personal factors.
She'd be happy with the $45 to $55 range but at this point she'd take $40. In my opinion she needs to get connected to a savvy headhunter who is actively working to place her,or dealing rather than just applying online (often blind) or through cold call recruiters. She thinks headhunters would be interested in her only if she was ready and willing to pursue a tech com management position again, rather than just being a senior writer. I disagree, and I might just have her convinced to try it. She has nothing to lose.
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Old 08-08-2018, 11:19 AM
 
Location: TN/NC
34,944 posts, read 31,087,664 times
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I'm also in IT, working as an administrator of an ERP platform at a large organization in my small metro in TN. I'm also interested in salary information in Raleigh. I took a trip there last month, probably my first in ten years, and came away very impressed.

Does anyone have info or experience with Duke Hospital, WakeMed, other medical IT providers? I also have several years of experience in financial systems IT, but would prefer to not go down the fintech route again.
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