If you were offered a job in a dangerous country?

[onascale]

How crazy would this be?

I'm middle aged, stupidly took voluntary redundancy 7 years ago, thinking that with my experience and qualifications I would find another job.
Hah.

I've had some temp contracts, but I'm not paying into a pension. Covid hit the job market hard and it hasn't really recovered, I'm barely making enough to cover living expenses. This is probably going to get worse, not better.

I have been offered a job in a very dangerous country. I would be living in a compound, but there is always the possibility of being in very real danger.

However, the money is amazing. I could do 3 months there and earn a year's salary.

DH wouldn't be happy, we have been married for years and he is giving me a hard time every day about money.

DCs have finished Uni, are in their early twenties, we've seen them once in the past year.

I've always been independent, I'm not scared and really, what have I got to lose? I'm living a slow, suburban death.
This was never what I wanted for myself. DH has got stuck in his ways as we've got older.

All thoughts appreciated.

For me it would depend on the danger....serious crime versus potential environmental danger.

Would you have the option to do a short stint?

What job (do you love it?)

Are more opportunities likely to come up, and will they often be dangerous?

Can you tell us the country? Is it a war zone?

Reading what you've written, it sounds like you want to do it, which has to be the main consideration, surely?

It sounds like you want to go so I would defo look into it. What country is it as that could have a huge influence on opinions.

Depends on the danger as PP said - if it's just that you're in danger of being robbed if you leave the compound, then just go and live a reclusive ex-pat life for a few months.

If it's turbulent politically and likely to blow up... thats different.

Would your DH go with you?

Go for it. Civilians are kept pretty safe and it’s only 3 months.

Well if you’ve only seen your DCs once in a year then this will completely kill any relationship with them. Why haven’t you put more effort into seeing them? Maybe you need to fix that before putting yourself at risk.

I’ve worked in quite a few insecure/fragile countries. Where are you considering?

Like PP have asked…what’s the nature of the danger?
Will DH go with you or would you be going back & forth?

As your children are young adults it could be worth giving it a shot.

I'd do it. Or rather, I would have done before my grandchildren arrived. I could easily keep in touch with my kids, but small grandkid relationships aren't built on zoom calls. Not for me anyway.

You're bored, your life doesn't feel purposeful. A bit of an adventure and a big chunk of money at the end sounds like a good (if temporary) remedy to me.

Also bear in mind that life in most dangerous places is deathly boring, because you either have to be at the office or the compound. Think someone driving you to the supermarket once a week as your big outing. Nothing unchaperoned. For months.

Is there regular R&R somewhere safer nearby? Does the company/organisation have a security lead on the ground? What are there SOPs and contingency plans like? What access do you have to private healthcare and/or evacuation in an emergency? How many ways out do you have by air, land and sea?

Maybe OP wonders why they don't put more effort into seeing her. It doesn't have to be her fault to fix.

Maybe they'll appreciate her more when she comes back.

It would depend what the danger was for me. I’ve worked in places where I couldn’t leave compounds - but that was because it was dangerous / not allowed for lone women. That’s one type of risk - I was still working for a multinational company and there was no threat of not being able to leave safely at the end of my contract. It was often very boring, I had basically no time to myself for several months, and I wouldn’t do it again now.

I would be thinking much more carefully if the risks were related to political instability, armed conflict or environmental disaster. I would want extensive reassurance about how I would be extracted / repatriated if normal transport options were no longer possible or if the situation descended to a point where the compound was no longer secure. I would think carefully about access to healthcare both emergency and routine.

What will the tax situation be? How long would you have to commit for?

Why have you assumed OP hasn't put effort into seeing her adult DC? Perhaps they're busy making lives for themselves?

Is the company offering the job experienced in working in dangerous environments? i.e. risk assessments are rock solid, they have £££ insurance, back up facilities, personal protection if required. What do you know about them? Can you use your network to find someone who has worked for them & speak to them?

I have never worked in such an environment but I imagine it can be stressful - boring or scary and not much in between. I would have no idea what day to day life would be like at all. That would worry me but you may be different!

I'm really curious about which country it is now! But it's perfectly reasonable for you not to say, OP.

I always wanted to do the 'working somewhere very different from my normal life' thing, but never managed it. So I'm encouraging you to satisfy myself, really! Meanwhile I just travel to those places without any responsibility.

Depends what it is and how dangerous, are we talking Kim Jong Uns personal assistant here or a warzone or just somewhere where you could stay away from the issues.

This! Please share the country 🤔

Yup. A compound in South Africa is a different equation to a compound in Afghanistan.

I'm going to keep the country under wraps because there are a few moving parts and I don't want the company to see this thread.

Not Afghanistan, more dangerous than South Africa. Not Ukraine. The concern is not pickpockets, it's more serious than that.

We wouldn't be able to leave the compound, meals are provided, it would be 8 weeks on, 4 off. All flights paid. I can leave at any time after my contract. So I could continue to do 8 weeks + 4 or I could keep going back.

Our DCs finished Uni, (they were around a lot then). Now they have both started demanding jobs, working very long hours, to add to that they have partners and spent last Christmas with them. When we saw them we took them all on holiday with us for a week, although we aren't seeing them much when we did, we saw them for a week. Thanks for your concern, we are all fine with the arrangement as is.

I’d strongly consider it. Sounds like the compound setup is well organised. Do some real research on say, FCO country advisory pages, and try the US ones too (can’t recall the link). Find out if you’ll get special training before you go - I lived in a dangerous country for a while and received excellent training on how to deal with certain aspects.

I can’t imagine wanting to live somewhere where you have to stay in a compound to be safe and have to have training to deal with certain situations. No amount of money is worth that surely

In your shoes, I think I'd go for it. If you can earn four years' salary for every one year, I'd go and just stick it out for as long as I could.

I would

Would you find the work interesting? If the job itself is really interesting, that might make compound living more bearable than if that's not the case. Have you lived on a compound before? How do you feel about living and working in a relatively limited space - would it feel claustrophobic, or not be an issue?

Would your husband come with you? If so, can he work there too? Does he have work lined up? If not, how does he feel about being a trailing spouse? What would he do with his days while you're working? Would he suit compound living, or find it claustrophobic?

If he wouldn't come with you, how's the communications infrastructure in the place you'd be going to? Would you be able to speak regularly? What sort of impact would living apart for 2 months at a time have on your relationship, especially if communications options are more shaky?

How's the infrastructure generally? Is it a country where there are power and/or water cuts regularly? You'll be confined to the compound - what are conditions on the compound like? What would your housing be like? What would you do when you're not working?

What's the healthcare system like? Does the organisation you'd be working for provide it, or would you be reliant on local medical services? If you got appendicitis, for example, would you feel confident you'd get good treatment in good time?

There are probably other questions, but these are some of the ones I'd consider before saying yes - they money is good for a reason; what are the potential negative impacts on you and your life, and does the amount of money they're offering counterbalance them? If so, go for it and have fun!

My brother worked for IBM in Johannesburg, he was confined to his hotel unless he wanted to be accompanied by his driver/bodyguard, he said it was the most boring month he had ever spent. He has worked all over the world but would never return to South Africa if they paid him millions.