Stock compensation gives Big Tech workers a powerful reason to stay. Layoffs and the AI boom are changing the equation.

Stock compensation has long been a retention tool for Big Tech workers, but layoffs can eliminate unvested equity. The AI boom is providing alternative paths to equity wealth through startups. Rob Waters, laid off from Google, was offered a new role but hesitated due to frustration with bureaucracy and the potential loss of a few hundred thousand dollars in unvested equity. Other workers like Julie Zhu and Yousuf Imran also weighed stock compensation in their career decisions.

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