[AstroChimpHam]

Agree they deserve a good part of it. My qualm is mostly around what "good" is. Employee #50 making $350k off a success doesn't feel like like a tragedy to me. If employee #5 made that at Box, I'd be upset too.

I disagree strongly about your characterization of risk. Long run losing of $10k for 10 years is nothing like losing salary completely for a year. Unless you've been very good with money, taking a year with no salary in the Bay Area means Ramen. That year is also the start-up's most risky and the one with the least support. Most of the time when I hear these arguments it's from employees who have never tried founding. People who've tried both and know how difficult it is to keep yourself going for a year making nothing and trying to convince someone to pay for what you made don't think the equity split is unfair anymore-- even when they go back to being employees.