Going Home
#106
Re: Going Home
It is going to vary industry by industry though and you have to take into account variations in salaries across the world. For example in my industry Canadian salaries are much higher than they are in the UK and the norm is 15 days holiday + stats (10 in BC). the salary increase more than makes up for the loss of 8 days holiday (UK 25 days plus stats (8)).
I once received some very good advice that if you are relying on your holiday time to keep sane you are living wrong and need to amend your life wholesale.
I once received some very good advice that if you are relying on your holiday time to keep sane you are living wrong and need to amend your life wholesale.
Pah! That's daft advice IMO. I love to travel with my family, and my children love experiencing new countries/cultures/food, and we go without on other things so that we can have amazing adventures in different countries. I couldn't do that if I/hubby didn't have decent holiday time. Thankfully hubby gets 30 days plus stats, and I work for myself so can set my own holidays.
#107
Re: Going Home
My points with Air Canada just got me and her Business class flights back to the UK for cheaper than the price of an economy seat #WINNING
#108
Re: Going Home
Yes. I gave the AC points to my ex but kept the Amex points (accrued by charging hotels/tickets/conference facilities to my card and expensing the statements). Amex points bought our garden fence ($7000 worth of materials) our bathroom renovation and something else, the house roof maybe.
Yep, my husband is. He travels a lot with work, mainly just day trips to Scotland/Ireland/Europe, and gets a lot of Avios points. So far, in the past year all 4 of us have gone to Milan, Paris, Geneva, and 3 of us to California (he was already out there) all with Avios flights.
BA Avios have served me well. Flights to the Canary Islands (before BA stopped doing that sort of thing), numerous pairs of return flights in Club World between UK and Vancouver and back (including this autumn for the first time doing it 'the other way round').
These were nearly all earned at Tesco however...Although some were actually earned by flying
These were nearly all earned at Tesco however...Although some were actually earned by flying
So flying Business Class (or any class) for work isn't all about the hardships referred to then. There are benefits too.
#109
Re: Going Home
The advantages are that you see lots of places (you can make them all look the same by seeing only airport-hotel-office or, maybe, you can tack on a few days to each trip and develop a strong knowledge of what solitary visits to national parks are like). If you so desire, the airline will then make it possible for you to spend your leisure time in an aeroplane just as if you were at work. I thought it interesting, btw, that the loyalty points schemes were so slow to latch on to the idea that, having spent 100 nights in Holiday Inns, the last thing one would want was another night in a Holiday Inn. I was thrilled at the option to take a bicycle instead.
The other big advantage is that the frequent traveler is divorced from his or her family, there's no need to attend children's sports fixtures or drama/ballet recitals as one is away. It makes having a child at "home" like adopting one of those charity children in Africa, one can write "family man" on one's linkedin profile without having to actually engage with any children.
Oh, and there's the thrill of walking into a chain hotel in, say, suburban Cincinnati, and being greeted by name, knowing that the same thing will happen in suburban Amsterdam and on the outskirts of Laramie, it's uplifting when desk clerks know who you are.
#111
Forum Regular
Joined: Dec 2008
Posts: 224
Re: Going Home
It took us two years and kept telling ourselves what we would be going back to in the UK all the negatives
Here in Calgary my wife earns three time more than UK and I earn twice as much so that more than pays for the higher cost of living
Here in Calgary my wife earns three time more than UK and I earn twice as much so that more than pays for the higher cost of living
#112
Re: Going Home
I earn about 2.5x what i was earning in the UK, but it's not all about the money brother
#113
Joined: Sep 2008
Posts: 12,830
Re: Going Home
How does one determine a cost of living comparison,
How much money left at the end of the month, or
Comparing prices in the UK to prices in Canada?
We find ourselves way better off than when we were in the UK and the cost of living is way cheaper here than the UK.
How much money left at the end of the month, or
Comparing prices in the UK to prices in Canada?
We find ourselves way better off than when we were in the UK and the cost of living is way cheaper here than the UK.
#114
Re: Going Home
Yep, this... I saw your post (Stinky) below about having a workforce, but in order to build the business high enough to be able to afford to hire workers you need to put time in yourself, which brings you to square one with less or no holiday time in the initial 2-5 years it takes to get the business live. And there ain't no way i'm going even 2 years without a holiday
#116
Re: Going Home
Previously as a director level employee I never had the choice to fly business class, and often had multiple-leg long haul journeys. The employer collected the rewards/flight points too.
#117
Re: Going Home
I fly quite a lot - 8 or so trips a year, primarily to UK. None of those are in business class as a) it's too short a flight to qualify under our travel policy and b) Air Canada now charges a co-pay in addition to upgrade credits (which one earns through frequent travel) & I'm not paying that myself. On those (now rare) occasions when I need to travel long haul (Last trip in 2014 was St Johns-Toronto-Vancouver-Sydney(Oz)-Singapore-HongKong-Toronto-St John's in about 2.5 weeks) I get to fly biz class and am very grateful for the enlighted attitude of my employer as it applies to employee health on long haul travel. I've done Asia in economy before and it sucks the big one.
I collect Aeropesos both through travel and through a credit card. They are marginally useful for domestic Canadian travel but less useful for transatlantic as the taxes AC impose mean that one burns 60k aeroplan points and $600 for a $900 transatlantic ticket which doesn't seem terribly good value. But, yes, they are a benefit, a perk like hotel reward points. I consider them part of the compensation for spending time away from my family and cramming myself into uncomfortable aircraft seats for hours on end.
At the end of the day though business travel is generally a soulless and lonely affair despite it's perceived glamour. Attached photograph sums it up reasonably well.
#118
Re: Going Home
I collect Aeropesos both through travel and through a credit card. They are marginally useful for domestic Canadian travel but less useful for transatlantic as the taxes AC impose mean that one burns 60k aeroplan points and $600 for a $900 transatlantic ticket which doesn't seem terribly good value.
#119
Re: Going Home
Everyone has a different basket of goods that they require each month for their life style.
They then have to hustle for an income based on their actual and embellished achievements. Alternately they can run the risk of entrepreneurship which isn't easy in any country but can bring optimum rewards financially.
After that they must ask themselves if they are happy based on their surroundings, influences, goals and how they spend their days.
I think I'd probably be financially ahead in the the UK and also I'm fairly certain I'd have more left over each month.
Probably though I'd have longer, more congested commutes (by about an hour a day) , be fatter and have less conversations with people. I'd rather have 20 hours a month to invest in exercise than sitting on a train than the money although I have the luxury of being childless.
I've not read much of this thread so forgive me if I'm re-hashing.
Last edited by JamesM; May 30th 2016 at 6:29 pm.
#120
Re: Going Home
I collect Aeropesos both through travel and through a credit card. They are marginally useful for domestic Canadian travel but less useful for transatlantic as the taxes AC impose mean that one burns 60k aeroplan points and $600 for a $900 transatlantic ticket which doesn't seem terribly good value. But, yes, they are a benefit, a perk like hotel reward points. I consider them part of the compensation for spending time away from my family and cramming myself into uncomfortable aircraft seats for hours on end.