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A comment on The trimodal nature of software salaries in the Netherlands and Europe (2021). Parent comment

Re:The trimodal nature of software salaries in the Netherlan... by cmrdporcupine on Saturday July 02, 2022 @04:40PM (#31962164)
Base level compensations for FAANG positions outside of SV are indeed pretty typical and humdrum.

But they contain a large equity portion. And over 2-3 years that equity portion ends up being more than the base salary, and you can get pretty close to a Bay Area compensation range.

e.g. I was L4 @ Google Waterloo in Canada. Base compensation was nothing special. Good for the immediate area, but not stellar. Yes, nice perks, amazing benefits, decent vacation, good bonus, etc. But after accruing RSUs for a few years you're probably making double what you started with. Especially so if the stock goes up a bunch.

Could you make more money working directly for Google in SV? Certainly, but your cost of living would be way higher. But even if you stay home you're likely making at least twice what your peers in the regular local companies are making.

Unfortunately it's terrible golden handcuffs, because nobody else in the region will be able to match that compensation package.

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Re:The trimodal nature of software salaries in the Netherlan... by mupuff1234 on Saturday July 02, 2022 @06:11PM (#31962908)
That was true for the longest bull run in history, which may or may not continue.
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Re:The trimodal nature of software salaries in the Netherlan... by cmrdporcupine on Saturday July 02, 2022 @06:16PM (#31962935)
Sure, though the equity refreshes done at Google are done yearly targeting a $$ range at the current share price, and then vesting over multiple years. So even if the stock goes down it will tend to amortize out to about the same over a number of years, and if the stock goes up a bunch again older grants made "at the bottom" could even net you big results.

But of course there's also the chance that not only will Google's stock go down, but their revenues... and generosity... will to.

Me, I "lucked out" and sold my RSU at the peak. Though I've been living off the cash proceeds since, so.

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Re:The trimodal nature of software salaries in the Netherlan... by K0SM0S on Saturday July 02, 2022 @07:21PM (#31963422)
There are other ways to pay people, using stocks in a bull run is just good allocation of resources. Great companies always find a way to attract talent no matter the situation, even recessionary.
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