And even if you want to work onsite- ever notice that the near-universal distaste for open offices? Yet that's a trend in tech that refuses to die? There's an anti-open office layout story on HN every month, or used to be. For all of the power that software engineers think they have as an occupation, why can't they overcome being stuck in a bullpen, sometimes even in a floating desk setup?

Maybe all of the cushy perks are just what management is willing to bestow, and something as simple as getting cubicles or team cubes is beyond the reach for most staff engineers.

Would a labor union be overkill for getting such a concession? Perhaps. But in the absence of any sort of professional representation to push back or push for things, all you can do is blog stories that get upvoted on HN, and not much else.