At the end of the day, companies don't really care that much if they lose some of "the best." A lot of "the best" are changing jobs on a fairly regular basis anyway.
> companies don't really care that much if they lose some of "the best."
SWE salary numbers would suggest otherwise
Are those numbers to retain or to attract?
That SWE salaries, especially at some companies, are high in the aggregate doesn't mean that companies will necessarily bend their policies too far to accommodate a specific SWE who thinks they're special enough that the policies don't apply to them.