Was "A ping pong table and enough free time in my schedule to actually use it for half an hour on a quiet day without the area manager coming in and demanding that we get back to work" too long?
Ill stay at an average paying job with a great culture, over a shitty culture and more money. But only to a point.
I think the issue most companies don't realize is that we are forcing many people under a living wage, and at that point being paid better is the only thing that counts.
Was “A ping pong table and enough free time in my schedule to actually use it for half an hour on a quiet day without the area manager coming in and demanding that we get back to work” too long?
About 5 years ago our department manager bought us a barbecue for our warehouse.
It is still in it's plastic wrapping. We have never had the time to get together as a group and use it.
My experience there is that someone has to spearhead the initiative to use it. Show management that its a positive thing and if they dont jump on board, shove it back into the corner and say "we tried".
We had one at a place I used to work at and we had a $5 friday lunch. We all worked a few extra minutes into lunchtime to cover the hour that one guy spent cooking. The only real "sacrifice" that had to be made was someone had to go grab the supplies on thrsday afternoon. In the end the bosses gave the "chef" paid time to shoot off, get the supplies and cook. They also agreed to cover the gas for the bbq.
Doesnt sound like much but $5 for a can of coke and a couple of cheesesteak sandwiches, some spicy sausage sandwiches, bacon and egg rolls... friday lunch was always a good time.
I think that's a stance that make different amounts of sense at different compensation levels.
You make $50k and someone offers a $75k salary? Then you'll likely risk the culture. If you make $150k and facing a $200k offer? The bird in the hand might be seen as good enough, though you may angle for a counter offer.