I've only been in situations where pay-cuts were offered a couple of times. In both cases equity was offered. In the more recent case, equity was offered with i

I've only been in situations where pay-cuts were offered a couple of times. In both cases equity was offered. In the more recent case, equity was offered with instant vesting, and there was a commitment to repay the deducted pay in full after the situation (short-term cache flow issues due to delays with fundraising) had ended. The 2nd case was obviously a better deal, the only risk to me was that the fundraising would fail completely. If they're not offering you any kind of upside, you need to push back.