On average US software engineers make much more money so even after any deficiencies like not paying holiday pay we still come out ahead. And even then, most companies will pay out holiday pay anyway regardless of state law, just as a matter of company policy.

We’ve got free speech though. So at least we can complain about it.

And on top of that we have to suffer in the tech industry with twice or more the average salary of non Americans. The horror!

In any major city in the US, a software engineer is probably making in the top 10% of area and there is little excuse to not have 3-6 months savings.

Having no rights is awesome as long as you're at the top percentiles of income (i.e. SWE), for the rest of the workers in the economy, not so much. And that's clearly reflected in the misery one can witness daily in American society, even in the richest cities.

Should I be expected to care about the plight of those in percentiles below me?

Yes

I witness plenty of misery every time I visit Europe. It reminds me that most places are about the same averaged out.

Reminder that the US has the highest median disposable income in the world, not just the highest top percentiles.

We are specifically talking about Stripe workers. But yes, I’ve chosen a contract job with even less rights than a full time employee at certain times in my life for more pay.