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Subject Expert
401k vesting is an unusual one to negotiate. Would love to see how that passed review by ERISA Counsel.
As to why elements are not eligible to be negotiated…a lot of times it comes to plan administrative rules. Deviating from rules for certain benefits CAN result in losing tax-exempt status which means the employees would have to pay for benefits post-tax. Which is a major negative.
Another key reason is complexity of administration. Manually administering special PTO can be a pain in the rear unless they have a decent platform to handle exceptions.
Lastly…it is also possible that you are not special enough. Nobody likes to hear that, but it is possible. And in today’s job market, employers have plenty of options to fill openings which leads them to offer fewer perks than they did two years ago.
The market is moving to favor employers than workers now
Every company and market has their own dynamic. Items which may be open in one may be a non-starter in another.
Do your DD. Understand which items you can negotiate with that employer before you start the conversation. If they open to salary, flex that. If they're open to RSUs, flex that. If you ask for everything, it's not going to be a productive conversation.
I will note that it's silly to assume you can negotiate vesting schedules or 401k. These tend to be corporate standards, and it's an administrative PITA to make adjustments (legal considerations). I would be concerned about a candidate that didn't have this appreciation.