It's probably something minor, but I would like advice...

[mjr]

Ok, here's the scoop...

The company I work for is moving approximately nine miles or so south to a major city. It's in the city now, but it's moving to the downtown part of the city.

I like it, because traffic won't be as bad for me, and it'll probably cut about 25 or so minutes off of my commute.

The problem is, it's looking like we're going to have to pay to park. They have a parking garage, and apparently it's something like $180/month to park there. Nearby lots are something like $5 a day.

So this would essentially be $2,160 less per year that I would be "making", due to parking fees.

One of the ladies at work basically made the comment "The company doesn't owe anyone a parking spot any more than they owe anyone a car payment or gas to get to work."

I told a friend of mine that, and he retorted, "Yes, and you don't owe them an employee, either."

And since I live about a half an hour to the south of this major metro, there aren't really any "mass transit" options for me, due to where I am located, and how other, larger cities are arranged. Others will have mass transit (bus/train) options, but will likely have to pay it themselves.

My question is as follows: How should I handle this? I just took this job a couple of months ago, and I'm getting some good experience that will be helpful in my career, but I will kind of feel screwed over if they make us pay the $180/month for parking.

So should I stick it out, or prepare to start sending out resumes again?

[MoonCat]

It's really up to you and your budget. If you feel it's worth it, hang in there. If not, start looking. It may sound harsh but your co-worker is correct re: the company not owing anybody free parking. Where I live, a lot of people work downtown, and they mostly have to pay to park. Not every building has its own parking area. There are paid parking lots and ramps all over.

[Aethian]

Can you find parking farther away and then take a bus to work? Around my Mom there is a large grocery store that allows people to park there, grab a commuter bus into the city, and then in the evening they get brought back to their cars. The grocery store allows this after it was pointed out that a lot of these people come into the store in the morning or before they head home at night.

[mjr]

It's really up to you and your budget. If you feel it's worth it, hang in there. If not, start looking. It may sound harsh but your co-worker is correct re: the company not owing anybody free parking. Where I live, a lot of people work downtown, and they mostly have to pay to park. Not every building has its own parking area. There are paid parking lots and ramps all over.

I only have one quibble with what you say above.

Currently, parking is free. If they had told me going into the position that within the next X months they were planning on moving to a place where we were going to have to pay to park, I would have asked for a slightly higher salary to offset parking costs.

When this happens, if we have to pay the full $180 (or heck, even those who have to take the bus/train daily), that is essentially a pay cut, and NOT what I signed up for.

I understand that companies go through and make changes. However, most of them don't require you to pay additional fees (which is what this is) to go to work every day. The service I perform for them essentially becomes slightly less valuable with this move.

[It's me]

Parking is a benefit, just like health care. By changing the business location and dropping free parking they have effectively changed the terms under which you agreed to work for them. Nothing wrong with bringing that up and asking to discuss new terms.

[csquared]

The company changed the terms of your employment. I have noticed that companies tend to do that. And of course, you are given two choices: Take it or leave it. Unless you are under a contract, it is all fair. We as employees do it too, usually in the form of our resignations. That being said...

Yes, you can go talk to your boss about it. See if you can get a little bump in pay to help cover the cost. I should also point out that it could come back at you. You could be labeled a complainer, someone who does not handle change well, etc.

Now, just to play Devil's Advocate, what if the situation was reversed? They are currently someplace that has $180/month parking and moving somewhere that has free parking. Would you offer up a pay cut?

You did not say how much you are being paid. I believe that you said in another post that it was an entry level position. So I am guessing that this is somewhere between 5 - 10% of your paycheck. Definitely not chump change.

You have a lot of things to think about. Keep in mind, there is no one right answer.

Some other things to think about:
Car pool: Even if you have to drive half way in, park someplace free and take one car in. Do make sure you can park there. Don't want to see you get Argabarga'd.

Public Transit: You did say that your home is not in the service area, but can you drive someplace, park for free and ride in? And is the public transit cheaper than parking?

Good luck.

[crazylegs]

There's a few other variables too:

What's the expected rate of progression with this company that'll take you to a position where your pay will eat this new loss?

How much do you enjoy this job? Enough to (essentially) take a pay cut?

How much will you spend in extra fuel? Are there other costs (like childcare) that will come into effect with your extra commute?

How easy is it to get hired elsewhere in your industry in a parking friendly environment?

[Raveni]

By all means, don't accept what "one of the ladies at work" said as the final day. Politely and respectfully ask your supervisor or other person in actual authority.

"I noticed the new office charges for parking. Will we be reimbursed?"

[mathnerd]

I would definitely ask more questions, and ask them of people who are in an actual position of authority.

My previous employer had reimbursement benefits for employees who took public transportation or had to pay for parking. It didn't always cover the entire cost, depending on location, but it did help. This wasn't a well advertised benefit, but it did exist. Your company might have something similar.

[BookstoreEscapee]

My previous employer had reimbursement benefits for employees who took public transportation or had to pay for parking. It didn't always cover the entire cost, depending on location, but it did help. This wasn't a well advertised benefit, but it did exist. Your company might have something similar.

I was going to say something similar. When I worked in Philadelphia I took the train into the city, and got a monthly pass (which also worked on the subway and city bus systems). Parking at the train station was only 50 cents a day, but my train pass was about $150 a month (and this was 12 years ago; who knows what it's up to now). I didn't get reimbursement from work but I was able to pay a certain amount with pretax money; the allowed amount covered most of the cost (this was also good on parking fees for people who parked in the garage across the street). You might want to ask if that's an option. I think the way it worked was that every month I got a voucher for the amount that was deducted from my check before taxes, and I used that to pay for my train pass.

[Greenday]

There's other options besides suffer or quit. You could always discuss it with your boss and see if the company will either straight up pay for parking or for a small raise to cover it.

[MoonCat]

I would definitely ask more questions, and ask them of people who are in an actual position of authority.

My previous employer had reimbursement benefits for employees who took public transportation or had to pay for parking. It didn't always cover the entire cost, depending on location, but it did help. This wasn't a well advertised benefit, but it did exist. Your company might have something similar.

This...is weird. Good weird, but weird nonetheless. It's something that would be nice to see, but I don't think most companies can afford to do it.

I get that it feels like the job conditions have changed. It's just that I've never heard of parking, or the lack thereof, being considered one of the conditions of employment. It's certainly something that can impact one's paycheck, though.

[Headset Hellion]

See if your company has an account with WageWorks. It allows you to use pre-tax dollars to pay for parking (and other commuter expenses). If not, I would imagine that your parking fees may be tax-deductible...

[Seshat]

I believe you said it cuts 25 mins (each way?) off your commute. That means extra personal time, and reduced fuel costs and wear and tear on the car.

Take that into consideration as well.

[mjr]

Thanks, everyone. Ok, allow me to clarify a few things...

Can you find parking farther away and then take a bus to work?

Possibly, but I'd have to drive most of the way there (to the office), I believe. And I don't know that the bus/train station is in a good area. Although there is a vanpool service in my area that I may need to check out that may be cheaper.

You did not say how much you are being paid. I believe that you said in another post that it was an entry level position.

I'd rather not reveal the exact amount, but the paying to park would be roughly 3.3% of my gross pay ($2,160/yr for parking @$180/month). It's not an entry level position.

Public Transit: You did say that your home is not in the service area, but can you drive someplace, park for free and ride in? And is the public transit cheaper than parking?

Good luck.

See my previous response.

There's a few other variables too:

What's the expected rate of progression with this company that'll take you to a position where your pay will eat this new loss?

How much do you enjoy this job? Enough to (essentially) take a pay cut?

How much will you spend in extra fuel? Are there other costs (like childcare) that will come into effect with your extra commute?

How easy is it to get hired elsewhere in your industry in a parking friendly environment?

To answer your questions
#1: I don't know. I don't know how often they give merit increases, or how big they actually are.
#2: It's OK. I'm getting valuable skills I can use later on if I need to.
#3: I'll actually have a closer drive. It will save me about 64 miles a week. About 3 gallons of gas, or approximately $10 ($40/month, maybe) I don't have any costs like childcare to worry about.
#4: I couldn't tell you. I'd have to look around.

Politely and respectfully ask your supervisor or other person in actual authority.

"I noticed the new office charges for parking. Will we be reimbursed?"

The sad part is, the ones "in actual authority" don't really seem to know, either.

I believe you said it cuts 25 mins (each way?) off your commute. That means extra personal time, and reduced fuel costs and wear and tear on the car.

Take that into consideration as well.

Yes, it would cut probably 25 minutes or so each way off of my commute. But then again, so would a full-telecommute job.