Bad employer: Bay Microsystems (www.baymicrosystems.com/)

1. low salary, garbage stock, long working hours

All engineers’ salary is less than $50k/year, even the senior engineers. Stock options are in garbage status for >10years.

Before you join, if you ask for higher salary, your Stock Option numbers on the offer letter will stay as “virtual”, because you will be put in a “contractor” position and usually be pushed out before Stock Option vested.

If you accept the low salary, you can have a lot of Stock Options. But, it had re-funding every 2 years. Stock is diluted again and again, and worth nothing.


2. worst management style

Most of engineers are asian. Tony Chiang, who is VP of engineering, always talked in a “Mafia” way, insulting engineers, forcing people to work overtime, teasing your family members, jesting other funders.

Management team is playing tricks against employees, everywhere. For example, your “Stock Option Plan” document will be delayed for 3~6 months after your first working day. And, when you started reading it, you can see an item, saying:
“
If this employee quit or is removed from company, within 6 months he or she can’t work for other companies in this same area.
…..
By signing this document, we both agree all disputes will be solved within company, and won’t be spreaded outside.
….
“

3. bad financing

revenue is very small, almost none. VC’s fund is not enough, and usually do re-funding every 1~2 years. This company did downsizing several times, the laid-off & fired workers aresparsed in many states.