In my experience, being a salaried employee doesn't really give you skin in the game at all. It's often illusory, as owning a sliver of equity or profit sharing translates to practically no upside or downside. Salaried employees and contracts are equally likely (or unlikely) to be invested in the success of the company. Misusing contractors or mismanaging salaried employees is a failure of management, and ultimately a failure of ownership. Garbage at the top, garbage at the bottom.