News for hackers. Stuff that matters.

A comment on US Suspends Visa Program for Tech Firms Including Microsoft. Parent comment

Re:US Suspends Visa Program for Tech Firms Including Microsoft by jmyeet on Thursday October 08, 2026 @02:06PM (#50009543)
If your business (including your startup) relies on paying sub-market wages, that's a "you" problem. You're not entitled to underpay employees because your business can't survive if you don't.

I see this with startups all the time. Cofounders get 30-50% equity with preferences and then want to hire a lead engineer as a first hire... with 0.5% equity and a $100,000 salary.

Big companies already do a lot to pay as little as they possibly can. AI is just the latest foil to suppress wages.

[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:US Suspends Visa Program for Tech Firms Including Microsoft by aranelsurion on Thursday October 08, 2026 @06:09PM (#50013096)
Oh I don't disagree. I don't think of it in terms of entitlement, I think of it in terms of growth and competitiveness.

What I disagree with is "it's not a labor problem, it's a compensation problem" framing.

I think it IS a labor problem, and also a compensation problem. Compensation itself only solves for the local maxima.

[ Parent | on HN ]