Engineering capability and financial savvy are somewhat orthogonal. You will keep some top performers and lose others by paying median wages. Some people also s

Engineering capability and financial savvy are somewhat orthogonal. You will keep some top performers and lose others by paying median wages. Some people also simply value stability or find other aspects of the job worthwhile over seeking higher compensation. It's also really easy not to take into account all avenues of compensation: salary, healthcare, bonuses, retirement, tax-advantaged vehicles such as HSAs, stock options - I'd say at least half of the employees in any field are mostly clueless about finances at this level, take a glance at base salary and make a rough decision whether it's good enough.