Agree, but I’ll say of those gimmicks on site subsidized food places and gyms are genuinely nice. Like I don’t want to play ping pong at work, but if you’re saving me a few gym and food trips a week I’m down.

And some of us even didn’t like it, because those places could often blur the lines between a place of business and a place for socializing

To be clear, this was always the goal. If an employer could have you work 80 hours a week and sleep under your desk, they would. The goal is to give employees things to do around the office, so they don’t feel the need to actually leave work. Because if you’re playing ping pong in the break room, you’re immediately available for your manager to go “hey, we have a project for you.” Even if you’re not clocked in while playing ping pong, you’re essentially on call.

Those were gimmicks from that boom time, when wages were generally high and sooner folks switched jobs within weeks. Perks mattered in that period. Then wages dropped but the mindset that these perks mattered remained.