I think that entry-level positions (outside of SF) are usually driven mostly by whatever the local cost of living is plus a bit to keep the positions clearly ab

I think that entry-level positions (outside of SF) are usually driven mostly by whatever the local cost of living is plus a bit to keep the positions clearly above what retail positions can offer - CoL would similarly take a while to adjust to the new lower income of folks so I wouldn't expect it to respond particularly quickly. But yea, I agree that that's one way to pull down the wages. I do think they'd end up suffering from the same sort of pressure though - if you pull on an entry level person at a low rate then there will be a lot of tempting competing offers they'll be considering when they've got a year or two under their belt - and then they'll be in the same pool as the other junior devs (or maybe the intermediate ones). I hasn't really thought about the zero experience folk though - thanks for mentioning it!