[sandeep3in]

Originally Posted by snaronikar

Here is the final offer given by the company to my friend today. Is this worth it?

The below are the details:

Basic Pay: AED 13,500/month (increase from 12K to 13.5k)
Housing: 65,000/anum.
Car allowance: 2500/month (increase from 2K to 2.5k). The catch here is the company is providing the allowance of 2.5K AED till he gets his licence as a taxi charges. Once he gets his licence, the co. will provide car+petrol+manitenance charges+toll charges as he will be using toll road.

This is definetely not worth.

The salary your friend should ask is 25 to 30 K to have a comfortable living Put it simple ask the company to provide accomdation, instead of the 60,000 AED .By doing so you would end up in a good deal .

1 BHK is tough for 70K AED in Al Ghusais /Qusais .You could get a studio apartment ie a single room (this is your living room + Bedroom+Dining room) a toilet and a kitchen for 70 K .

[MaserQ]

Let me try a different angle - is your friend the savings type? Or does he want a typical expat lifestyle for a couple of years?

It is possible to make a few calculations using the pointers made by Steer and DKG and comparing that to his expenses/savings in India. Then apply the question posed above. The final call lies with him.

[shajufx]

Originally Posted by DKG

However, now after 8 years in India after returning home if someone offered me a million dollars to go out of India to work abroad again, the answer is a big NOOOOOO!!! I wouldn't trade this life for anything. But then we all have different perspectives and priorities don't we

You just stole my words ! I spent 5 years outside, returned end of 2005, now being 3 years in India, I would not even consider going back for any material gains. Its not worth comparison. The freedom you enjoy here is materialistic, spiritual, social, intellectual & whatever you define. I keep on forcing my relatives, friends, collegues etc to come back. Strangely, 80% of them do not have the confidence that they can get a job and survive here, rest 20% are in a dream world, they think India sucks !

[DKG]

I guess we are also richer on account of our exposure and experiences we harnessed in distant lands. So probably for guys like us its a full circle and there's no doubt in our minds. But for someone who's never been exposed to life abroad its probably a healthy experience to head out for a few years.

Like someone once said " He who hasn't travelled the world has not read even the first page of the book of life!!"

I think while you are in your 20's or early 30's a stint abroad can be fun. When you are at a stage where you start investing in friendships and relationships ie when people become more important, then there's no place like home.

[PatienceWins]

@DKG, That was an excellent post. The mistake people usually do is to just convert the currency into rupees and accept the offer.

[shajufx]

Yes, you also tend to convert rupees into a foreign currency (from where you returned to India) and spend atleast for few months after return. I did that for an year, now back to normal.

[menonrajesh]

Originally Posted by DKG

while you are in your 20's or early 30's a stint abroad can be fun. When you are at a stage where you start investing in friendships and relationships ie when people become more important, then there's no place like home.

So true!

However snaronikar, it all depends on your friend. As many have rightly put, with this offer he is not going to save 'a lot', if that is his motive for a stint in Dubai.

IMHO, Minimum 13K AED as base pay + Accomodation expense covered on actuals + Children's education covered (atleast 1k per kid per month - if on actuals,better)+ Car and related expenses covered + all other common perks like ticket etc - could make somewhat good offer, if he can further fine tune the offer. Else, as someone has posted above, his wife should also be employed and earning.

[Steeroid]

Originally Posted by speedzak

I have my office near Qusais. Finding a 1BHK apartment for 70k is very difficult except (maybe) in some very old buildings.

Yes the going rate there is 90k at least for a 1-bed apartment.

If the company will bump up the housing allowance part to cover his actual rentals, the offer would be acceptable.

Else, it is a compromise. And remember, the compromises only start there. Even if the company were to offer him 90k as housing allowance, he would save about 5-6k a month if he lives frugally which is Rs.60-75k.

[snaronikar]

Thanks for inputs guys. I have informed my friend about the same. He is also seeing the posts and as per my discussions with him y'day, as as per your recommendations, he will again talk to the co. and if they agree to the above recommendations, he will be going to Dubai otherwise, he may drop this idea. Will let you people know about the same after his discussions in couple of days.

[BaCkSeAtDrIVeR]

@snaronikar - ask for an 18 month review of salary / perks. And once a year plane tickets and 30 day home-visit leave (with salary) + 20 days sick leave. Very crucial when you do not have anybody else near you for support.

[speedzak]

Originally Posted by snaronikar

Will let you people know about the same after his discussions in couple of days.

Good! We'll wait for that.
Hope he makes the right decision. After all, it's his life and career. We can only comment from outside. Ain't it?

[snaronikar]

OK...My friend got a call y'day from the co. He has asked that if they pay accomodation at actuals, he is ready to consider the same or he will drop this offer.

[vij]

I am not in dubai but my uncle is in Dubai.
This offer is definitely not worthy for a well-settled Indian with a secure job in India.

[Technocrat]

Btw there was a news on some new rule on sharing of a villa by different families in today's TOI. Here is the full news. I

Indians on the streets in Dubai
Many Evicted As ‘One Family One Villa’ Policy Implemented
Daniel P George | TNN

Chennai: Hundreds of Indians and their families were stranded on the roads of Dubai on Tuesday as police and municipality officials evicted them from their homes.
The deadline to end villa sharing in Dubai passed this weekend, but many families had defiantly stayed in their homes as they awaited final eviction notices.
The Dubai municipality enacted the “one villa, one family” law earlier this year, claiming that sharing of villas was unsafe and presented environmental and health risks. A number of Asian expatriates take up shared accommodation in a bungalow, or villa, as it is called. Each house is divided into a number of portions and families share a common kitchen and bathroom. Indians find it cheap to live in shared accommodation as rents have sky-rocketed in Dubai.
Water and electricity were cut off in some of the villas. Unable to find affordable accommodation, some families have decided to return to India, while others have chosen to split up temporarily with the wife and children returning to India and the husband staying on to continue working.
“My family has left for Chennai as I just cannot afford to keep them here. I will be returning home soon after I put in my papers,” said P Natesan, a draughtsman in an architect’s office.
Though their salaries are far higher than what they would earn in India, most people working in Dubai still find it hard to make ends meet, especially as many also have debts to pay off back home. Jobi Joseph from Chennai who works in a private hospital in Dubai told TOI over telephone, “The rent for an apartment is 100,000 dirhams (Dhs) a year, but my salary is only Dhs 6,500. I am sending my family back for good and I will also return once I clear my debts.”
The eviction on Tuesday was carried out in areas such as Jumeirah, Um Suqeim, Al Barsha, Satwa, Karama and The Springs. Only one family can now live in a villa, although immediate family members may share. Omar Abdul Rahman, head of buildings inspection for Dubai municipality, told TOI, “These homes are cheap because they are dangerous and there are also many health hazards facing families living in them. Most of the partitions are created using plywood or asbestos. We are concerned about the safety of the people. We had served notices on the landlords but as there was no response, we were forced to take strict action.”

[benbsb29]

The new villa sharing rule is going to come as a major blow to families concerned with the really high cost of renting out a place to stay. When i was a kid, we used to stay in a villa which was shared with another family. It was great in the sense that there was always someone to play with. As kids, that alone was a good reason.