I work for a company in Seattle whose technical employees are getting picked off by Amazon. Amazon offers probably 25-50% more in salary for similar positions,

I work for a company in Seattle whose technical employees are getting picked off by Amazon. Amazon offers probably 25-50% more in salary for similar positions, and we also can't compete with their equity offering. But in exchange for all that money, you have to work probably at least 50% more hours, tolerate weaker boundaries between your work life and personal life, and deal with a whole lot more stress. It's a trade-off that some people are willing to make, and others aren't. But what really sucks is that the real estate market is getting to the point where you need an Amazon salary just to afford a house in Seattle.