Advice on which job to pick

[farmadiazepine]

---

Members do not see this ad.

Hello,

Would like thoughts. I got offered a job in NJ working as a staff RPh for $66/hr.

Current job: Hospital RPh staffing. State job with pension. Pay is $51/hr ($48/hr base + $3/hr differential). No weekend differential. Work 8.5 hour shifts which includes an UNPAID 30 minute lunch break. Work every other weekend. Work 40 hours a week. State pension after 10 years (worked only 3 so far), good benefits (medical/dental/401k like plan/vacation and sick/9 holidays and have to work 4), and also have seniority. Current commute time to work is 40 minutes each way, total of 80 minutes per workday.

New job offered: Hospital RPh staffing. Private hospital in rich area. Pay is $67/hr ($63/hr base + $4/hr differential) and $70/hr on weekends ($3/hr differential for Sat and Sun on top of $4/hr differential). Work every 3rd weekend only. Full benefits (medical/dental/401k/vacation and sick lumped as PTO/6 holidays and only have to work 2). The only issue it is part time (20 hours a week minimum). Work 8 hour shifts with paid 30 min lunch break. Opportunity for full time may come up but not sure when. May be able to work more hours. Total commute time is 10 minutes each way. Total commute time of 20 minutes a day.

Any thoughts?

Regardless of which job I have I will continue working at my independent an additional 18 hours a week.

I have no desire to work as a supervisor. I like staffing. I like coming in, working, and leaving, not having to take any work or responsibility back home.

 

[rxkrafted]

How about the commute time comparison between the two places? Personally, I would be comfortable with the current job with pension with guaranteed 40 hours a week. It sounds like they work around scheduling for your other job at the independent place. I would check if they can cater to scheduling around your second job because some people can be strict with that.

 

[Rouelle]

I would pick the pension, at least if you’re happy there.

 

[farmadiazepine]

How about the commute time comparison between the two places? Personally, I would be comfortable with the current job with pension with guaranteed 40 hours a week. It sounds like they work around scheduling for your other job at the independent place. I would check if they can cater to scheduling around your second job because some people can be strict with that.

Commute to state job is 40 minutes each way, so 80 minutes a day. 5 days a week x 80 minutes = 400 minutes = 6 and 1/2 hours of commuting a week

Commute to possible new job is 10 min each way, so 20 minutes a day. 3 days a week right now would be 60 minutes/week = 1 hour a week

I appreciate the responses so far. Thank you

 

[Saiyo]

Personally, I would not ever quit a full time job for a part time unless I was absolutely miserable.

 

[Dred Pirate]

Personally, I would not ever quit a full time job for a part time unless I was absolutely miserable.

this - unless you are perfectly comfortable working 20 hours a week + 18 a week at your other job - that is practically full time -

You will have a LOT more free time thou 🙂
do you have debt? etc

 

[PumpkinSmasher]

I would be tempted to jump ship to decrease commute and weekends. But it is a risk to go part time, but as long as you get full-time benefits and the independent pharmacy job is solid I think it is worth a shot.

I wouldn't jump ship for part time job if you are sole breadwinner for a family and have had significant debt.

- Could you stay on call for state hospital?

About 5 years ago I ended an hour commute for a 15minute commute. No regrets. Extra time with family, friends, time to exercise, relax, sleep! Commuting is a life suck, no one ever looks back and regrets extra time...

All that BS you hear about people enjoying a commute is just people trying to put lipstick on a pig.

 

[Momus]

I want to know how the pension is calculated before I make the jump. Some pensions are trash, some are golden. 40 mins Commute sucks. You also got a big pay bump on the other job, you have to calculate everything into account. That might negate losing the pension if you just invest the difference and get 7%/yr from stock (withdraw 4% forever). It's 33k more a yr now vs. A pension 30 yrs later (if you work full time). Start making a table comparing the $ amount on the two jobs and the benefits you lose/gain.

I also would not want to work 40h+18h/w like you do with 0 day off. Work work work is meh... You need to find a balance.

 

[BC_89]

Hello,

Would like thoughts. I got offered a job in NJ working as a staff RPh for $66/hr.

Current job: Hospital RPh staffing. State job with pension. Pay is $51/hr ($48/hr base + $3/hr differential). No weekend differential. Work 8.5 hour shifts which includes an UNPAID 30 minute lunch break. Work every other weekend. Work 40 hours a week. State pension after 10 years (worked only 3 so far), good benefits (medical/dental/401k like plan/vacation and sick/9 holidays and have to work 4), and also have seniority. Current commute time to work is 40 minutes each way, total of 80 minutes per workday.

New job offered: Hospital RPh staffing. Private hospital in rich area. Pay is $67/hr ($63/hr base + $4/hr differential) and $70/hr on weekends ($3/hr differential for Sat and Sun on top of $4/hr differential). Work every 3rd weekend only. Full benefits (medical/dental/401k/vacation and sick lumped as PTO/6 holidays and only have to work 2). The only issue it is part time (20 hours a week minimum). Work 8 hour shifts with paid 30 min lunch break. Opportunity for full time may come up but not sure when. May be able to work more hours. Total commute time is 10 minutes each way. Total commute time of 20 minutes a day.

Any thoughts?

Regardless of which job I have I will continue working at my independent an additional 18 hours a week.

I have no desire to work as a supervisor. I like staffing. I like coming in, working, and leaving, not having to take any work or responsibility back home.

As others have mentioned, how’s your pension calculated and how much do they pull from your paycheck for it? If I was getting ~ 3 - 4% taken out for it and I had seniority at my job With fulltime hours and benefits It’d be hard to turn away from 7 yrs more of what seems to be tolerable work for a lifelong pension.

My other factor is what’s your investment risk tolerance? If you contributed the extra pay % toward a good growth fund with stocks and took the other job to save commute with higher hr to hr pay, I’d take the new offer IF I was highly confident I’d get on fulltime in the near future.

But if your working the extra 18 hrs on your own then perhaps the part time don’t matter as much but then I’d ask what’s your income to debt ratio look like? If low to no debt and invest with good returns I’d take the new job. If your in debt with modest returns due to focusing on the loans / bills I’d keep your job with a pension plan.

My post is as clear as mud lol but boils down to debt and your investment strategies to replenish a pension ( I plan on sticking with VA if I’d get the chance but to each their own).

 

[farmadiazepine]

You get full benefits and PTO for part time?

Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using Tapatalk

Yes, they offer full benefits and PTO for part time. Yes, I know, it's unusual, but that's what they do. Full medical/dental/401k (or something like that, 457 or 403b), vacation and sick grouped together as PTO, and 6 paid holidays.

I would be tempted to jump ship to decrease commute and weekends. But it is a risk to go part time, but as long as you get full-time benefits and the independent pharmacy job is solid I think it is worth a shot.

I wouldn't jump ship for part time job if you are sole breadwinner for a family and have had significant debt.

- Could you stay on call for state hospital?

About 5 years ago I ended an hour commute for a 15minute commute. No regrets. Extra time with family, friends, time to exercise, relax, sleep! Commuting is a life suck, no one ever looks back and regrets extra time...

All that BS you hear about people enjoying a commute is just people trying to put lipstick on a pig.

I could stay on at hospital maybe per diem. I wouldn't want to.

I want to know how the pension is calculated before I make the jump. Some pensions are trash, some are golden. 40 mins Commute sucks. You also got a big pay bump on the other job, you have to calculate everything into account. That might negate losing the pension if you just invest the difference and get 7%/yr from stock (withdraw 4% forever). It's 33k more a yr now vs. A pension 30 yrs later (if you work full time). Start making a table comparing the $ amount on the two jobs and the benefits you lose/gain.

I also would not want to work 40h+18h/w like you do with 0 day off. Work work work is meh... You need to find a balance.

State of NJ PERS calculates pension as years worked divided by 60 times final salary of last 5 years. If I work 35 years, it would be 35/60 x $101,000.

Currently, a little over 7% of our paycheck before taxes is removed and put into pension.

As others have mentioned, how’s your pension calculated and how much do they pull from your paycheck for it? If I was getting ~ 3 - 4% taken out for it and I had seniority at my job With fulltime hours and benefits It’d be hard to turn away from 7 yrs more of what seems to be tolerable work for a lifelong pension.

My other factor is what’s your investment risk tolerance? If you contributed the extra pay % toward a good growth fund with stocks and took the other job to save commute with higher hr to hr pay, I’d take the new offer IF I was highly confident I’d get on fulltime in the near future.

But if your working the extra 18 hrs on your own then perhaps the part time don’t matter as much but then I’d ask what’s your income to debt ratio look like? If low to no debt and invest with good returns I’d take the new job. If your in debt with modest returns due to focusing on the loans / bills I’d keep your job with a pension plan.

My post is as clear as mud lol but boils down to debt and your investment strategies to replenish a pension ( I plan on sticking with VA if I’d get the chance but to each their own).

Investments are with 401k from CVS and 457b with hospital, and I pick mid cap index funds for both plans since I can't pick individual stocks. I feel at my age, 31, it's the right amount of risk. I have about a total of $300k saved in those plans together. I have another $320k in investment accounts with stocks. I have another $25,000 cash on hand for emergencies.

My current debt is a mortgage balance of $472,000 with a monthly mortgage payment of $4110 in NJ. I also rent a place in NYC and my expenses for a 1 bedroom apartment and living in Brooklyn on a monthly basis is around $2200. I will leave Brooklyn at the end of 2019 and come back to NJ.

I guess I just have to write down pros and cons, and put a monetary number to commute times and other factors and see where it ends up.

I will definitely get full time in the future. Yes, I'm highly confident in that. The hospital hires within. It's just that I won't have any piece of mind until I do, and I asked what the turn over is like, and the RPhs (who I got a chance to talk to at the interview) told me nobody leaves until they retire.



Thank you all for the responses. I really appreciate it!

 

[Dred Pirate]

OP - why is your mortgage payment so high? my balance is 225k and 1050 a month (add in 300 a month for ins and taxes) - You payments are almost 4x mine but balance is twice as high. Are taxes that much higher in NY

I agree - I got rid of a long commute (went from 45 min to now 3 min) but I don't think you can afford to take a pay cut like that

 

[farmadiazepine]

Whoa, your monthly expenses are crazy high. Can you afford to take a pay cut?

No. I was planning maybe I would work the new part time job (2 days 1 week and 3 days the next week), private pharmacy (2 days a week), and do a per diem (1 day a week) at another hospital in Manhattan.

OP - why is your mortgage payment so high? my balance is 225k and 1050 a month (add in 300 a month for ins and taxes) - You payments are almost 4x mine but balance is twice as high. Are taxes that much higher in NY

I agree - I got rid of a long commute (went from 45 min to now 3 min) but I don't think you can afford to take a pay cut like that

Not to give away all my details, but I bought a house during the financial crisis. I bought for $999,999. Put down $375k. Took loan for $625k. Interest rate 3.25%.

Principle and interest every month is $2720. Property taxes are $17,000 a year ($1389 a month). (That's cheap for where I live). I have been getting back $12,000 a year on my tax returns.

I'm looking to pay off the house in the next 5 to 8 years.

Yes, taxes in NJ and NY are crazy high. It's very bad in NJ. I am living in a town with very "low" property taxes.

Thank you all for the responses so far. I've decided to stay at the lower paying job with ridiculous job security and a pension. I will continue to supplement with my independent gig, and when the time is right I will move to a much higher paying job later (in a year or two or three, who knows).

Thanks, this forum is great. Thanks for all the questions. Appreciate it!

 

[Dred Pirate]

ok - that makes more sense - I thought you original balance was that high - but ya - why do people want to live there with taxes and COL that high

 

[Momus]

Yes, they offer full benefits and PTO for part time. Yes, I know, it's unusual, but that's what they do. Full medical/dental/401k (or something like that, 457 or 403b), vacation and sick grouped together as PTO, and 6 paid holidays.

State of NJ PERS calculates pension as years worked divided by 60 times final salary of last 5 years. If I work 35 years, it would be 35/60 x $101,000.

Currently, a little over 7% of our paycheck before taxes is removed and put into pension.

Investments are with 401k from CVS and 457b with hospital, and I pick mid cap index funds for both plans since I can't pick individual stocks. I feel at my age, 31, it's the right amount of risk. I have about a total of $300k saved in those plans together. I have another $320k in investment accounts with stocks. I have another $25,000 cash on hand for emergencies.

My current debt is a mortgage balance of $472,000 with a monthly mortgage payment of $4110 in NJ. I also rent a place in NYC and my expenses for a 1 bedroom apartment and living in Brooklyn on a monthly basis is around $2200. I will leave Brooklyn at the end of 2019 and come back to NJ.

I will definitely get full time in the future. Yes, I'm highly confident in that. The hospital hires within. It's just that I won't have any piece of mind until I do, and I asked what the turn over is like, and the RPhs (who I got a chance to talk to at the interview) told me nobody leaves until they retire.

Housing+tax fixed expenses : $6310/mo. (4110 mortgage + 2200 rent)
Utilities/food/ins/eating out/entertainment etc = 1500/mo
$7810/mo expenses

Bought 1M house (probably worth $1.5M+ now), you paid down to $500k and $620k investments = $1120k. Total money you need to accumulate is about $1M net. I have some reason to believe you have a wife/SO to build that wealth because there is no way earning $162k gross will amass you all this in about 8 years (assuming you graduated at 23). Let's say 180k avg gross X 70% X 8 = $1M net living with no spending to achieve this. With $162k gross now, you are netting around $100k/yr ($3650 every 2 weeks or $7900/mo). That is about the same as the above expenses. So, it's very likely you have a dual income household now or you won't be able to save anything more every month.

Job #1 51/hr
Let's assume after 35 years you will make 200k/yr (2% raises every year + downward pressure because of too many pharmacists). You will get 35/60 X 200k = $116,666/yr in pension. You have contributed 7% pretax income for this pension.

Job #2 67/hr
16h/hr difference from job 1 or 33k/yr gross more + 7k gross 7% savings to match the pension savings (of 51/hr job) = 40k. If you can save the net pay difference yourself, take off 30% for tax, 28k net savings from your new job for 35 years and leave it alone in stocks, and assuming you get 7% return, you will end up with $4M. You can withdraw 4% in perpetuity, and you will get $160,000/yr.

I will take job #2 because I know I can save it myself and it will cut rental cost in NY + my commute time significantly. But then again, expecting stocks to keep chugging along at 7% return might not be realistic but not completely unreasonable (10% has been the average since 1928).
#1 is a safe choice, you don't have to do anything to get that monthly income.
#2 might net you more if you don't have any fu3k ups like selling stocks at the wrong time or spending frivolously. #2 also leave you with a sizeable stash you can leave for your family when you assume room temperature, #1 does not. Now, what does the first paragraph has to do with anything? Assuming you are a dual income household, you can take the pay cut of a part time job and wait for the opening of full time job. Or, another option 3 part time jobs until #2 opens a full time job for you.

 

[Momus]

I forget the possibility you rent out your house in NJ because you live in NYC for work. In that case, it's not far fetched for 1 person to do this.

#Job 2 assumes there will be 0 raises also which is unlikely. If you count the 2% raises for 35 years and save the raises, the balance at the end of 35 years will likely be exceeding $5M. You can withdraw 4% or $200k/yr on that.

 

[lord999]

Financial Reports | NJ Division of Pensions & Benefits

About the pension, you do realize that NJ is mathematically certain to default on their pension obligations? There is no political will to increase the tax burden to meet those commitments, either they are going to default or get a bailout of some sort. NJ has wasted too much time,and has caused themselves to face a guaranteed reckoning by 2023 at the longest, but probably 2020 with the current pace of expenditures. NJ is headed for the same sort of Raw Deal that New York had to impose in the 1970s. That could play into your calculations into whether you should stay or go. If you go, there is a high likelihood that if you ever came back, you would be placed in the reformed (raw deal) retirement plan rather than your good one. However, if you stay, you do so at risk for a Chris Christie type coming in and reforming the pension system against the beneficiaries such that you really wasted your time here.

 

[farmadiazepine]

Housing+tax fixed expenses : $6310/mo. (4110 mortgage + 2200 rent)
Utilities/food/ins/eating out/entertainment etc = 1500/mo
$7810/mo expenses

Bought 1M house (probably worth $1.5M+ now), you paid down to $500k and $620k investments = $1120k. Total money you need to accumulate is about $1M net. I have some reason to believe you have a wife/SO to build that wealth because there is no way earning $162k gross will amass you all this in about 8 years (assuming you graduated at 23). Let's say 180k avg gross X 70% X 8 = $1M net living with no spending to achieve this. With $162k gross now, you are netting around $100k/yr ($3650 every 2 weeks or $7900/mo). That is about the same as the above expenses. So, it's very likely you have a dual income household now or you won't be able to save anything more every month.

Job #1 51/hr
Let's assume after 35 years you will make 200k/yr (2% raises every year + downward pressure because of too many pharmacists). You will get 35/60 X 200k = $116,666/yr in pension. You have contributed 7% pretax income for this pension.

Job #2 67/hr
16h/hr difference from job 1 or 33k/yr gross more + 7k gross 7% savings to match the pension savings (of 51/hr job) = 40k. If you can save the net pay difference yourself, take off 30% for tax, 28k net savings from your new job for 35 years and leave it alone in stocks, and assuming you get 7% return, you will end up with $4M. You can withdraw 4% in perpetuity, and you will get $160,000/yr.

I will take job #2 because I know I can save it myself and it will cut rental cost in NY + my commute time significantly. But then again, expecting stocks to keep chugging along at 7% return might not be realistic but not completely unreasonable (10% has been the average since 1928).
#1 is a safe choice, you don't have to do anything to get that monthly income.
#2 might net you more if you don't have any fu3k ups like selling stocks at the wrong time or spending frivolously. #2 also leave you with a sizeable stash you can leave for your family when you assume room temperature, #1 does not. Now, what does the first paragraph has to do with anything? Assuming you are a dual income household, you can take the pay cut of a part time job and wait for the opening of full time job. Or, another option 3 part time jobs until #2 opens a full time job for you.

Wow. Just wow. You hit the nail on the head. Every single thing you mentioned was true (except I don't have a significant other yet; working on it). House was paid with $100k of my own money and parents gave 275k. Yes, value increased to about 1.5 million now.

I forget the possibility you rent out your house in NJ because you live in NYC for work. In that case, it's not far fetched for 1 person to do this.

#Job 2 assumes there will be 0 raises also which is unlikely. If you count the 2% raises for 35 years and save the raises, the balance at the end of 35 years will likely be exceeding $5M. You can withdraw 4% or $200k/yr on that.

I am leaning towards job #2. Thank you. Even though it will only be 20 hours a week in the beginning, I will be able to find other work easily.

Financial Reports | NJ Division of Pensions & Benefits

About the pension, you do realize that NJ is mathematically certain to default on their pension obligations? There is no political will to increase the tax burden to meet those commitments, either they are going to default or get a bailout of some sort. NJ has wasted too much time,and has caused themselves to face a guaranteed reckoning by 2023 at the longest, but probably 2020 with the current pace of expenditures. NJ is headed for the same sort of Raw Deal that New York had to impose in the 1970s. That could play into your calculations into whether you should stay or go. If you go, there is a high likelihood that if you ever came back, you would be placed in the reformed (raw deal) retirement plan rather than your good one. However, if you stay, you do so at risk for a Chris Christie type coming in and reforming the pension system against the beneficiaries such that you really wasted your time here.

Thank you, thank you, thank you. This is what I was very worried about. I don't want to spend 35 more years working in an NJ State hospital only to have my benefits drastically reduced later on in life. I know NJ has the 2nd worst funded state pension in all of the United States. There is apparently one state that is much worse.

 

[farmadiazepine]

Just an update. Thank you all for the advice on here, I appreciate it.

I chose to leave my low paying state government job with a pension to take work as a part time pharmacist at one location and as a per diem pharmacist at another location. I'll still be working retail independent on the side, so I'll have 3 jobs. I'll do doing anywhere between 32 hours to 60 hours a week depending on how much I want to work. I was really surprised at the huge difference in pay from a state RPh job to a private hospital RPh job. The difference is almost $40,000 a year before taxes. It was big enough of a difference for me to realize that quitting the state job was worth it. Heck, I can work 4 days a week (32 hours) now and still make the same amount of money I was making while working 5 days a week (40 hours) at the state hospital. To get back an entire day per week is a big deal to me, and it outweighed having a pension that I still would have had to work 30 years for.

 

[Amicable Angora]

Congratulations on your new jobs let us know how they turn out!

 

[nextyearrx]

Hello,

Would like thoughts. I got offered a job in NJ working as a staff RPh for $66/hr.

Current job: Hospital RPh staffing. State job with pension. Pay is $51/hr ($48/hr base + $3/hr differential). No weekend differential. Work 8.5 hour shifts which includes an UNPAID 30 minute lunch break. Work every other weekend. Work 40 hours a week. State pension after 10 years (worked only 3 so far), good benefits (medical/dental/401k like plan/vacation and sick/9 holidays and have to work 4), and also have seniority. Current commute time to work is 40 minutes each way, total of 80 minutes per workday.

New job offered: Hospital RPh staffing. Private hospital in rich area. Pay is $67/hr ($63/hr base + $4/hr differential) and $70/hr on weekends ($3/hr differential for Sat and Sun on top of $4/hr differential). Work every 3rd weekend only. Full benefits (medical/dental/401k/vacation and sick lumped as PTO/6 holidays and only have to work 2). The only issue it is part time (20 hours a week minimum). Work 8 hour shifts with paid 30 min lunch break. Opportunity for full time may come up but not sure when. May be able to work more hours. Total commute time is 10 minutes each way. Total commute time of 20 minutes a day.

Any thoughts?

Regardless of which job I have I will continue working at my independent an additional 18 hours a week.

I have no desire to work as a supervisor. I like staffing. I like coming in, working, and leaving, not having to take any work or responsibility back home.

Long term care is a good position too!

 

[farmadiazepine]

Congratulations on your new jobs let us know how they turn out!

Just an update. I took the new job a week after I posted here. I'm still there. It was the best decision for me. Current commute to work is 15 minutes each way, 7 miles each way. I don't even have to take highways, it's all local roads. Pay increased to base of $70/hr and on weekends its $72.50/hr. Shifts are 8 hours with paid lunch of 30 minutes, so I am really working 7.5 hours per shift. Weekends are every 3rd.

I'm glad I left the state job with a pension. It turns out the entire evening crew left after me except maybe a couple pharmacists. They had a massive amount of turnover in a year period in which all of the pharmacists left for lateral positions with higher pay.

Also got married in the mean time, just had the first baby, and the pay increase really helps me out as my wife stays home with the baby, and she can stay home as long as she wants! She will eventually go back to work, maybe after the baby is 8-10 months old. She works in healthcare.

Thanks again to everyone for their advice on here!

 

[Deja]

Just an update. I took the new job a week after I posted here. I'm still there. It was the best decision for me. Current commute to work is 15 minutes each way, 7 miles each way. I don't even have to take highways, it's all local roads. Pay increased to base of $70/hr and on weekends its $72.50/hr. Shifts are 8 hours with paid lunch of 30 minutes, so I am really working 7.5 hours per shift. Weekends are every 3rd.

I'm glad I left the state job with a pension. It turns out the entire evening crew left after me except maybe a couple pharmacists. They had a massive amount of turnover in a year period in which all of the pharmacists left for lateral positions with higher pay.

Also got married in the mean time, just had the first baby, and the pay increase really helps me out as my wife stays home with the baby, and she can stay home as long as she wants! She will eventually go back to work, maybe after the baby is 8-10 months old. She works in healthcare.

Thanks again to everyone for their advice on here!

still part time at new job or full time now?

 

[M0df]

Thank you for the update. A lot of times people ask questions but don't follow up.

Glad it turned out well for you. I think you worked for CVS before that?