It’s often a bad deal for employees, but I think it’s a good deal for the industry’s competitive wages for folks to be paid in equity. You have companies A and

It’s often a bad deal for employees, but I think it’s a good deal for the industry’s competitive wages for folks to be paid in equity. You have companies A and B with workers getting $100k in cash and $50k in equity. Company A goes under and B doubles, becoming known as an elite company worth hiring from. Employees from A demand their old wage ($150k) in their new jobs, and if you want to hire folks away from B, you have to match their new wage ($200k). It ratchets its way up as enough people see net wage growth to drag the industry’s competitive comp up.