Yep, either the promotions come with massive jumps in responsibility and fuck all jump in TC, or you find yourself basically promoted into a dead end position anyway where further career growth isn’t possible (there’s literally nowhere to go). This is very common for engineers.

Moving job is usually the more effective way to get more money, and at the end of the day, it’s the money that matters.

What if you like the company you work at? It's no small thing to feel comfortable with the work that you do and the people that you work with. Even if a promotion comes with more responsibility and modest pay bumps, that's often better than rolling the dice on a new company in the hopes of more money and the same comfort level.

Many people also don't have hundreds of employers lining up at their door to hire them. Even if they are, it's not necessarily for a bunch more money.

but you have to accumulate those little boosts to eventually reach C or D level where the compensation reaches a whole new level. This is like saying it aint worth studying because you still won't be employable by the end of the school year

That is very VERY dependent on the industry and the type of work you do.

Completely rubbish in some lines of service.

In this economy?