Job dilemma - two hospitality jobs, one or none

[limeandpepper]

O wise ones, just thought I'd put this job dilemma out here for a variety of opinions. It's still early days and I'm somewhat on casual trial at two places, and I might eventually need to negotiate a schedule that allows me to work at both places, or just pick up and give up the other. I can see the pros and cons with each but I don't know what to do...

Place A:
- Close to home where I currently pay minimal board (about half an hour's walk)
- Below average pay (cash in hand and no employee benefits)
- Not sure how many hours I'll get there, at the moment it seems pretty casual but I'll discuss with them further

Place B:
- Annoying to get to without a car (I don't drive and don't have a car); public transport only runs half the day so I'd have to rely on my partner to pick me up at the end of my shift
- Pays properly and provides leave and retirement contributions
- If they like me after a few shifts, they really want me to work there 5 days a week, but the transport situation is an issue - or I can move closer but not sure if that is worth it either

My ideal scenario would be to do a bit of both, but obviously that's not completely up to me. If I try too hard to juggle both I may even end up not having a job in either place! I guess I'm just wondering which place I should prioritize.

[mozar]

I would go for B because long term it's better to be at a place that has leave. How does your partner feel about continuing to pick you up? Can you bike?

[HappierAtHome]

With the cash in hand job, what would you do with the cash eventually? (Because I'm assuming it would be more than your living costs and you'd save at least some of it). If you try to make cash deposits into your bank account frequently / at relatively high values, it can flag you for possible criminal activity. I went to school with a dealer who was caught that way. If you stockpile the cash, it will likely become a large enough amount that you wouldn't be able to bring it across borders without suspicion, which could be a serious issue given your love of travel. You effectively need a plan to launder the money. And you need to be okay with committing tax fraud. My experience is that employers who expect their employees to commit tax fraud and to cover up their employer's fraud (tax, insurance etc are all effected by number of employees and salaries paid) are generally not going to treat employees well. You won't be covered for workers' comp, though I'm guessing risk of injury is low. No super obviously.

You can probably guess from all that what my answer would be. I think the freedom and opportunities inherent in NOT having a criminal record are worth guarding fiercely.

[Anatidae V]

Can you bike to place B? If so, if go with just that as your job (assuming they take you on)

[HappierAtHome]

Can you bike to place B? If so, if go with just that as your job (assuming they take you on)

Or bike / walk to a public transport hub that would get you there?

If you did end up full time at job b, would the pay be enough to justify moving to a small apartment nearby?

[limeandpepper]

Thanks for the responses so far! :)

mozar and anatidaev - I am open to biking. Possible concerns are safety issues (road safety in the route - part of it is a windy hilly area with cars going quite fast; and safety at the suburb where I'll be working - it's known to have questionable characters, and given the shift ends at night that compounds the dodginess.)

HappierAtHome, if I put the income into my tax return, will that still be a problem? A full-time job at Place B would be in the realm of 35k - 40k per year, which isn't much, while I think renting a room in that area would be something like 10k.

[HappierAtHome]

Then you wouldn't be breaking the law (which is in my opinion a good thing), but it could lead to your employer being found out for its illegal work practices. Which they won't be particularly happy about, as it's a nice little rort for them that they only pay cash wages and don't have to worry about super, workers' comp, payroll tax... you can see why it's tempting for small business owners to pay cash in hand.

It's just such a minefield of legal and ethical issues. My instinct is to run away fast from employers who are willing to engage in these practices, but I know it's much more of a grey space for most people.

[limeandpepper]

I see what you mean, HappierAtHome. Ahhhh, tricky. Place A is just so appealing location-wise, but I completely agree that the employers wouldn't be treating me as well as Place B in pretty much all aspects. Love the idea of working at Place B but the logistics are doing my head in.

mozar I forgot to mention, the partner isn't keen on picking me up 5 nights a week, which I totally get. It's a huge commitment to basically be a chauffeur 5 nights a week, every week, for as long as I work at this place.

[mozar]

Well a case study would be helpful. If you will be making 35k a year and pay less than 10k in rent you can save up for a 2k car. It doesn't sound like your area is conducive to just biking/public transport.

[limeandpepper]

Thank you everyone!

Latest update is that things may just work out at Place B. The boss seems to be coming around to the idea of me working just 3 days a week. The partner would be okay with picking me up 3 nights and I'll throw him petrol money and extra to make up for the inconvenience. Hopefully it will be a fairly reliable roster and I can have it as my main part-time job (and either still try to fit in Place A or do away with it if it's too difficult).  I may have to reassess at any time, but we'll see what happens.

I can also now say that moving there is out of contention. Even standing outside the restaurant at night waiting for my boyfriend was quite scary and intimidating, so I doubt I would be comfortable with a short walk home! My colleagues noticed that I was out there for a few minutes and ushered me inside telling me it was not safe!

[stripey]

I think that's a good move, place B.

I have done cash-in-hand type jobs in the past but not for quite a while and not for a great deal of money. I also do know several people who are involved in a class action to get their super paid to them...

[limeandpepper]

Yeah, a proper wage is so much better than cash in hand, and super makes a pretty big difference on top of that!