To ask you to help me decide which job?

[Helpwithdilemma101]

I have a big dilemma, I could really do with some help deciding.

I currently have a job (let's call it Job 1) but have been offered another job (Job 2) and I just cannot decide which one to go for. I didn't apply for job 2, they approached me. I am going to lay the main features of both jobs out here.. please help me decide! My background - I have two children (age 5 and 3), a supportive husband and family. We have just taken on a fairly large mortgage for renovation work this year.

Job 1 (my current job)
Large national charity
£21,000 per year salary, pension 5%
Full time 35 hrs per week
30 days per year holiday
Agile working (pretty flexible around working from home)
The office is about a 40 minute drive away. I have to be there probably 3 days a week.
Some travel locally, up to an hour away
The work is loosely related to the field I trained in (education) and I am quite motivated by it.

Job 2:
Small local business, has been around for 20 years and going strong.
£25,000 per year salary (potential tonne 30k in a few years), 5% pension
Full time 35 hours per week
20 days per year holiday
Pretty flexible and relaxed working
Office is a 5 minute walk from my house (so I can easily do school drop off every day, no rushing and battling traffic)
Completely unrelated to my training. Would be all new but quite interesting. On paper it's a promotion. Not sure how interesting I will find the field.
National travel on a monthly basis for 2/3 days at a time.

I'm so torn. I (mostly) like my current job but am really tempted by the new job offer. Which would you pick?

YANBU - Stay in job 1
YABU - Move to job 2.

Thank you! (Oh I name changed because this could be outing and I have talked about it with a few people IRL)

When you say the office closes over Christmas, does that account for the 10 days' less holiday over the rest of the year, so 20 days' annual leave plus 10 days that must be taken at Christmas?

Job 1 but ask for a pay rise on the basis that you have a better offer. This might not work of course but i would think it is worth a try. With young children personally I would not want to give up 10 days holiday.

Maybe the 20 days holiday at job 2 doesn’t include 8 days bank holiday? I’d find that out.
Plus the 2/3days travelling a month would be quite disruptive too.
But might be worth it for the shorter commute.
I’d go job 2 for shorter commute.

Job 2. Your day to day life would be much less stressful & you’ll see your kids more

I’d negotiate the holidays - even if it’s just that you get the Christmas shut down in addition to your 20 days

I don’t think the £4000 (gross don’t forget !) will end up being much after you’ve taken the money it will cost you to commute out of the net wage, plus the longer hours etc

Look at bank holidays. Is job 1 22 days + 8 bank hols?. Job 2 will be 20 days + 8 days bank hols.

Negotiate more leave, at least another week. I wouldn't go down to 4 weeks/year in your situation. But I've found once employers know that holiday is something you will need to negotiate on they are more reasonable about increasing entitlement.

Thanks so much for all the replies, lots of really good points to think about. Just to answer a few questions:

The holiday for job 1 is 30 days plus bank holidays plus xmas shut down

Job 2 is 20 days, increasing by 1 day a year up to 25 days, plus bank holidays. I'm not sure if they do xmas shut down

It is a great leave entitlement with current job, it's just the pay is crappy and I have no idea whether it will increase or not. Progression opportunities are limited.

Job 2, the pay is likely to go up to 30k after 2 years. Day to day in would have more time with the kids, could do school drop off, not rushing everywhere and stressed and exhausted but I'm just not sure whether that's worth the trade off of so much less holiday. Argh it's such a hard decision and I don't want to make the wrong one!

I may be wrong but I thought the minimum legal holiday now is 20 days plus 8 days bank holidays. Check that your 20 doesn't include bank holidays. If it doesn't, then you are basically comparing 28 vs 30 days - options 2 all the way.

timetastic.co.uk/holiday-calculator/

@msmith501 that’s not correct, the OP says that job 1 is 30 days plus bank holidays.

She also says job 2 is 20 days plus bank holidays

Must have missed that bit... sorry OP

Very good point about sick pay. Check that too

20 days holiday is below the statutory entitlement which is 28 days a year (this can include bank holidays though).

It would be 20 days plus bank holidays (so 28 in total). I've had a conversation with them today to see if I can negotiate 25 days. If they can honour that then it cha ges things as it basically brings things a lot more level.

Then, I think it will be a decision based around what I want to do with my life/career... a job working with young people/education which I feel more passionate about and which gives me a decent amount of job satisfaction or a job as a marketing manager which gives me a promotion and loads of new experience but doesn't really light my fire. Could open more doors for me in future though.

If they could meet me in the middle on that holiday and give 25 days, I would call Job 2 a done deal!

If they can increase the holiday allowance that makes it a decision. At the moment, I'd say 4k before any deductions simply isn't enough to give up so much annual leave. If you factor in what you'll actually get after tax, NI and student loan repayments it's probably a couple of hundred extra per month tops. I acknowledge that the easier and cheaper commute with Job 2 is a factor but balanced out by the need for monthly national travel.