4 ms·

There are some layoffs but from what I’ve seen so far hiring salaries are not coming down. This to me speaks of a subset of tech companies slowing down rather t

by TimPC 4y ago

There are some layoffs but from what I’ve seen so far hiring salaries are not coming down. This to me speaks of a subset of tech companies slowing down rather than a general crash. There are plenty of companies still hiring and hiring at top rates. It seems like half of all the layoffs are in crypto which is a typical response to the underlying assets dropping 80+%. The remainder seem to be companies that are over reliant on debt-based capital responding to higher interest rates. To get the tech slowdown you’re proposing the higher interest rates will have to shake out through all of venture capital and start-up money will have to tighten up.

dc-programmer 4y ago
Keynes had a theory that wages are sticky-down meaning they rarely decrease. My guess is tech salaries will stagnate for a while. But with poor performance of RSUs and inflation eating into purchasing power this will essentially be a pay cut.
- tech_tuna 4y ago
  Not only RSUs but stock options as well. I've always pushed/leaned/fought for a higher base over more options. I prefer a bird in the hand. However, if your timing is good and risk tolerance is high, taking more options over a higher base can work out quite well.
  - dc-programmer 4y ago
    Options do not seem like real wages to me because unlike RSUs I’ve never been able to translate them to cash. You’re totally right. And with future expected value of options decreasing (and RSUs), base is more important than ever.
    - TimPC 4y ago
      Base is important but tricky to get a large proportion of. You can negotiate some increase in base but if you want to go too aggressively getting a lot of it will lower total comp. The fact is companies pay base with cash on hand and pay options by issuing new shares. Issuing new shares doesn’t feel like real money in the same way to a lot of corporations so they are happier to do that. I agree markers are currently on a downward trend but I think RSUs are still a valuable portion of compensation. Even if they end up worth only 70% of their initial value you can get a larger total comp from a mix of RSUs and base than just base. Options on the other hand are largely vapour in modern markets. Many start-ups are electing to stay private for time periods exceeding fifteen years. They fully expect most employees to not be able to afford the options they get because of the tax implications combined with limited ability to sell. Some services exist to try and alleviate this problem although most do so imperfectly and take a large premium for the risk and uncertain time window for the shares to become publicly tradeable. These days I mostly don’t bother looking at companies that can only offer options because they generally aren’t willing to offer a high enough base to compensate. I’d far prefer $200k base and $200k RSUs to $300k base and $100k of uncertain options. The first offer is far easier to find than the second as very few start-ups are willing to raise base to compensate people for the lack of liquidity in their options.
- lumost 4y ago
  depressed RSUs will likely act as a compensation adjustment. If your compensation is 50% RSU, and RSU's fall by half - then you have a 25% pay cut. With the recent market turbulence some have seen close to a 50% cut due to RSU price declines.
- imtringued 4y ago
  >Keynes had a theory that wages are sticky-down meaning they rarely decrease. Loss aversion plus money illusion in a nut shell. Most people wouldn't agree to a paycut so employers must fire employees which is even worse for the company and the rest of the economy. This is why deflation results in mass unemployment.
MichaelMoser123 4y ago
> so far hiring salaries are not coming down that may take some time, If there are more job seekers then your next offer may be lower than your current one.

by TimPC 4y ago

dc-programmer 4y ago

Keynes had a theory that wages are sticky-down meaning they rarely decrease. My guess is tech salaries will stagnate for a while. But with poor performance of RSUs and inflation eating into purchasing power this will essentially be a pay cut.

tech_tuna 4y ago
Not only RSUs but stock options as well. I've always pushed/leaned/fought for a higher base over more options. I prefer a bird in the hand. However, if your timing is good and risk tolerance is high, taking more options over a higher base can work out quite well.
- dc-programmer 4y ago
  Options do not seem like real wages to me because unlike RSUs I’ve never been able to translate them to cash. You’re totally right. And with future expected value of options decreasing (and RSUs), base is more important than ever.
  - TimPC 4y ago
    Base is important but tricky to get a large proportion of. You can negotiate some increase in base but if you want to go too aggressively getting a lot of it will lower total comp. The fact is companies pay base with cash on hand and pay options by issuing new shares. Issuing new shares doesn’t feel like real money in the same way to a lot of corporations so they are happier to do that. I agree markers are currently on a downward trend but I think RSUs are still a valuable portion of compensation. Even if they end up worth only 70% of their initial value you can get a larger total comp from a mix of RSUs and base than just base. Options on the other hand are largely vapour in modern markets. Many start-ups are electing to stay private for time periods exceeding fifteen years. They fully expect most employees to not be able to afford the options they get because of the tax implications combined with limited ability to sell. Some services exist to try and alleviate this problem although most do so imperfectly and take a large premium for the risk and uncertain time window for the shares to become publicly tradeable. These days I mostly don’t bother looking at companies that can only offer options because they generally aren’t willing to offer a high enough base to compensate. I’d far prefer $200k base and $200k RSUs to $300k base and $100k of uncertain options. The first offer is far easier to find than the second as very few start-ups are willing to raise base to compensate people for the lack of liquidity in their options.
lumost 4y ago
depressed RSUs will likely act as a compensation adjustment. If your compensation is 50% RSU, and RSU's fall by half - then you have a 25% pay cut. With the recent market turbulence some have seen close to a 50% cut due to RSU price declines.
imtringued 4y ago
>Keynes had a theory that wages are sticky-down meaning they rarely decrease. Loss aversion plus money illusion in a nut shell. Most people wouldn't agree to a paycut so employers must fire employees which is even worse for the company and the rest of the economy. This is why deflation results in mass unemployment.

MichaelMoser123 4y ago

> so far hiring salaries are not coming down that may take some time, If there are more job seekers then your next offer may be lower than your current one.