Jobs & Career covers the money side of work — not resumes or interview tips, but the financial decisions that matter once you have the job: reading a pay stub, understanding your benefits, comparing a salary to an hourly rate, knowing what taxes come out of your check, and knowing what to do if you lose your job.
Whether you’re starting your first job, switching careers, or navigating a layoff, these guides explain your money in plain English.
Starting a Job
The first few weeks of a new job come with a stack of forms and decisions. Here’s what you need to know before you sign anything.
How to Read a Job Offer
Pay, benefits, PTO, retirement, and total compensation — what to check before you say yes.
What Are Employee Benefits?
Health insurance, 401(k), PTO, disability — how to understand and compare the full package.
First Job Money Checklist
W-4, direct deposit, benefits enrollment, and your first pay stub — a step-by-step setup guide.
Your Paycheck
Your paycheck is smaller than you expect. Here’s a clear explanation of exactly where the money goes.
How to Read a Pay Stub
A line-by-line guide to every section of your pay stub — gross pay, deductions, and net pay.
What Taxes Come Out of Your Paycheck?
Federal income tax, Social Security, Medicare, and benefit deductions — explained simply.
Gross Pay vs. Net Pay
Why your take-home pay is always less than your salary, and how to budget from the right number.
What Is FICA on Your Paycheck?
Why Social Security and Medicare come out of every paycheck, and how much.
What Is Direct Deposit?
How to set it up, what info you need, and when your first paycheck will land.
What Is a W-2?
What every box on your W-2 means, and how it connects to your tax return.
Job Decisions
Comparing offers, choosing between salary and hourly, understanding W-2 vs. 1099 work, and asking for more money.
Hourly Pay vs. Salary
How to compare them fairly, including overtime, benefits, and predictability.
W-2 vs. 1099: What’s the Difference?
Employee vs. independent contractor — how taxes, benefits, and pay really differ.
How to Ask for a Raise
When to ask, how to make the case, and what to do if the answer is no.
Losing a Job
A job loss is stressful. These guides cover the financial steps to take first — benefits, unemployment, and stabilizing your money.
What to Do After Losing a Job
A step-by-step financial checklist — from filing for unemployment to cutting expenses and protecting benefits.
How Unemployment Benefits Work
Who qualifies, how much you receive, how to apply, and what to expect.
Save Money on a Tight Budget
Practical ways to cut expenses and stretch your money when income drops.
More Jobs & Career Guides
Six more guides covering what happens after you’re hired — from performance reviews and salary negotiation to understanding your time off, agreements you might sign, and how to leave professionally.
What Is a Performance Review?
A performance review is a structured conversation about your work. Learn what managers evaluate, how reviews connect to raises and promotions, and how to prepare and get the most out of yours.
How to Negotiate a Salary
Most employers expect negotiation. Learn how to research your market rate, what to say, how to handle pushback, and what else to negotiate beyond base salary.
What Are Paid Time Off and Sick Leave?
PTO is worth real money. Learn how vacation and sick leave accrue, rollover vs. use-it-or-lose-it policies, parental leave, and what happens to unused days when you leave.
What Is a Non-Compete Agreement?
A non-compete can limit your options after leaving a job. Learn what they cover, how enforceable they are by state, and what to do before signing one.
How to Write a Two-Week Notice
Leaving professionally protects your reputation and references. Learn what to include, what to leave out, how to deliver it, and what to expect after you give notice.
What Is a Background Check?
Most employers run one before finalizing a job offer. Learn what they look at, what they can’t look at, your rights under the FCRA, and how to prepare if something comes up.
More Jobs & Career Guides
Benefits, retirement accounts, workplace leave, and the financial moves that matter most at work.
How to Read Your Employee Benefits Package
Health insurance, 401(k) match, PTO, FSA/HSA — your benefits package can be worth $10,000–$25,000 on top of your salary. How to read and compare it.
What Is a 401(k) Match and How Do You Get It?
Your employer adds money to your retirement account when you contribute. How matching works, what vesting means, and the minimum you need to contribute to get all of it.
What Is FMLA and When Can You Use It?
The Family and Medical Leave Act gives eligible employees up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave. Who qualifies, what situations it covers, and how to request it.
How to Negotiate a Job Offer Beyond the Salary
Salary is one part of an offer. PTO, signing bonus, remote work, and review timelines are all negotiable — here’s how to approach the full package.
What to Know About Workplace Retirement Accounts
Not everyone has a 401(k). How 401(k), 403(b), SIMPLE IRA, and pension plans work — and what to do when you change jobs.
How to Build an Emergency Fund on a Starting Salary
Start with $500, not six months. A realistic step-by-step approach to building your first financial cushion when money is tight.
Career Transitions & Workplace Money
What Is Workers’ Compensation?
Workers’ comp covers medical bills and lost wages if you’re hurt on the job. Who qualifies, what’s covered, and how to file a claim.
How to Use Your FSA Before It Expires
FSA money disappears at year-end if you don’t spend it. What qualifies, what doesn’t, and how to use every dollar before the deadline.
What Is a Severance Package?
What’s typically included, what you can negotiate, and what to do before you sign — including why you should never sign immediately.
How to Switch Jobs Without Losing Money
Vesting cliffs, health coverage gaps, 401(k) rollovers, and clawback clauses — the financial checklist for a job change that actually pays off.
Side Hustle Taxes: What You Owe
Side income is self-employment income — no withholding, plus 15.3% SE tax. How to estimate what you owe and make quarterly payments.
How to Earn More Money at Work
Ask clearly, build in-demand skills, and know when switching jobs beats waiting for a raise. A practical guide to growing your income.
Advanced Pay, Benefits & Career Events
Gig income, equity compensation, layoff playbooks, and benefits most employees don’t fully use. Useful for anyone juggling W-2 work alongside side income, navigating stock-based pay (RSUs and ESPPs), starting a new job, or planning ahead for a layoff round.
Gig Economy Taxes
Self-employment tax, the mileage deduction, 1099-K vs 1099-NEC, and quarterly estimates for rideshare drivers, delivery couriers, and freelancers.
ESPPs Explained
How Employee Stock Purchase Plans work, what a “lookback” feature is worth, and why a quick-sale strategy usually beats holding employer stock.
RSUs: Restricted Stock Units
RSUs are taxed at vest as ordinary W-2 income — and default 22% withholding often falls short. The vest-tax-sale timeline, plus when to sell vs. hold.
Surviving a Layoff
The financial playbook before a possible layoff, the questions to ask in the meeting itself, and the moves that matter most in the first two weeks after.
First 401(k) Decisions
Enroll, capture the full match, choose traditional or Roth, set a contribution rate, and pick a sensible investment — usually a target-date fund.
Commuter Benefits (Pre-Tax)
Up to $325/month each for transit and parking, pre-tax. A 25-40% effective discount for a benefit most eligible workers never set up.
Latest Jobs & Career Articles
- What Is Vesting?
Vesting is how you gain full ownership of employer-given benefits like a 401(k) match or stock grants. Learn vesting schedules, what you lose by leaving early, and how to check your status. - Commuter Benefits: Pre-Tax Transit and Parking Explained
Pre-tax commuter benefits can save 25-40% on transit passes and parking through pre-tax paycheck deductions. The 2025 limits are $325/month for transit and $325/month for parking. Here is how to use them. - First 401(k) Decisions: What to Do on Day One
Your first day eligible for a 401(k) is a pivotal financial moment. The right answers are simple: enroll, get the full match, pick the right account type, and don’t overthink the funds. Here is how. - Surviving a Layoff: Before, During, and After
Layoffs rarely come without warning signs. Here is what to do in the weeks before a possible layoff, the questions to ask in the meeting itself, and the financial moves that matter most in the days after. - RSUs: Restricted Stock Units Explained
Restricted Stock Units are taxed at vest, not at grant or sale — and default federal withholding of 22% often falls short of what high earners actually owe. Here is what every RSU recipient should understand. - Employee Stock Purchase Plans (ESPPs) Explained
An ESPP lets you buy your employer’s stock at a 5-15% discount through paycheck deductions. With a “lookback” feature, this can be one of the highest-return benefits available. Here is how to evaluate yours.
How to use this section
Jobs & Career focuses on the money side of work. If you’re new to working, start with First Job Money Checklist and How to Read a Job Offer. If you’re comparing jobs, see Hourly Pay vs. Salary and W-2 vs. 1099. If you lost a job, go straight to What to Do After Losing a Job.
For broader money skills, see Money Basics, Saving Money, and Taxes.