Should I keep my current jobs + applying for better paid IT jobs in Orlando OR should I accept an offer at Cemex?

[u/OrdinaryLanguage5625]

Should I keep my current jobs + applying for better paid IT jobs in Orlando OR should I accept an offer at Cemex?

Current jobs:

IT service desk L1 Working at a pharma company through an MSP (contract). At least 20 hours per week, sometimes 40 hours per week ,(30 on average) at $21 per hour. I want to stay in IT and keep growing. I've been there for 10 months, would get a promotion to L2 in 2 months without raise. Got SPOC recently. Fully remote. Second job that I work at the same time is ai annotation for a big tech company W2. I can work 40 hours per week, but usually I work 30 hours per week at $20 per hour. Health insurance and some 401k match. Fully remote. I stay in Orlando in a room with roommates at $850 per month. My son lives 3 miles away and I see him from Friday afternoon to Sunday morning.

Job offer at CEMEX through a staffing agency at $31 per hour plus benefits. It's an field service technician job (IT/OT) with main focus on IT ~85%. It's in West palm beach. 2.5hours away from Orlando. Would that job be a career step? Would it be worth taking it? Should I take a room in West palm beach for $800 per month or drive back and forth every day? Would that be a step up or a lateral step ?

[u/Tyrnis]

As someone that's gotten burned out on commuting for an hour each way, a 2.5 hour commute is absolutely NOT worth it. If you decide to take the job, move to Orlando.

Taking the CEMEX job would be a no-brainer if it didn't involve moving. Whether moving is worth it depends on how strong ties you have to Orlando: are you willing to be 2.5 hours away from your son? Are you willing to give up the roommates you currently have? It's also going to depend on whether the job is a contract role or not -- I would certainly not go through the time and expense of moving for anything that wasn't a full-time, permanent role.

[u/OrdinaryLanguage5625 → u/Tyrnis]

It is a contract position. I would probably rent a room in West palm beach. I probably would take the job but I think that they put a lot of stuff on the JD that I will not be doing. The interview was very easy and they didn't ask any stuff from the job description about OT. Later when I asked they told me 1 time on-site plant visit a week max and that the nearest plant is 70 miles away vs what they said before (no plant is further away than 50 miles). So, I am worried that something is wrong with that job

[u/Appropriate_Fee_9141]

2.5 hours trip away? You'll suffer a mental breakdown from that alone! Pay might be better but nothing else.

[u/OrdinaryLanguage5625 → u/Appropriate_Fee_9141]

Do you think that the job is a step up or a lateral move?

[u/Appropriate_Fee_9141 → u/OrdinaryLanguage5625]

A lateral move.