Typically this ends up involving a salary cut, yes. However: the point is to negotiate. And if you're negotiating you can also negotiate other things at the sa

Typically this ends up involving a salary cut, yes. However: the point is to negotiate. And if you're negotiating you can also negotiate other things at the same time. Including your pay. For my book on negotiating a shorter workweek (https://codewithoutrules.com/3dayweekend https://codewithoutrules.com/3dayweekend) I interviewed multiple people, and I've also heard from readers who successfully negotiated shorter workweeks, and a common theme was that they also negotiated a higher salary while they were at it. Or switched to higher paying jobs, etc.. So even with 20% reduction in pay, they still did OK. If you're already a great negotiator you might be at top of your expected salary range—but then if you're a programmer at the top of your salary range you're probably in good shape financially to reduce your pay a little.