Job offers shared on social media often look impressive at first glance, but the fine print can tell a very different story—something many freshers tend to overlook.
Highlighting this issue, Sahil Thakur, founder of BlockseBlock, recently shared an incident on LinkedIn involving one of his students who had received an offer letter from a startup quoting a salary of Rs 18 lakh per annum (LPA).
However, when Thakur broke down the numbers, the headline figure quickly fell apart.
According to him, the fixed base salary in the offer was just Rs 6 LPA. The remaining Rs 12 LPA was made up of multiple conditional components. This included a Rs 4 LPA performance bonus, payable only if the employee achieved 120% of targets. “The catch is that targets are set by the manager and structured so that only around 10% of people actually meet them,” Thakur noted.
Another Rs 3 LPA was listed as a retention bonus, payable only after two years—provided the employee chose to stay that long. “Most people quit within 18 months,” he pointed out.
The remaining Rs 5 LPA was offered in ESOPs, calculated at the company’s current valuation and vesting over four years. Thakur warned that unless the company exits or goes public, those shares could end up being worth nothing.
“So what the candidate really gets is Rs 50,000 per month,” Thakur wrote. “That’s Rs 6 LPA. Not Rs 18 LPA.”
Summing it up, he said the offer effectively guaranteed Rs 6 LPA, while the remaining Rs 12 LPA was “imaginary.”
Thakur criticised companies for inflating cost-to-company (CTC) figures using bonuses that are hard to achieve and equity that may never materialise. “Rs 18 LPA looks far better than Rs 6 LPA on LinkedIn. Most freshers don’t ask for a detailed breakup—they just see the big number and say yes,” he said.
He added that he explained the math clearly to the student: “You’re not making Rs 18 LPA. You’re making Rs 6 LPA with a lottery ticket.”
Thakur also offered advice to fresh graduates evaluating job offers. He urged them to ask for a detailed CTC breakup, distinguish between guaranteed and conditional pay, ignore ESOPs unless a company is close to an IPO, and stop comparing headline CTC figures with peers.
“What actually hits your bank account—that’s your real salary,” he said.
Highlighting this issue, Sahil Thakur, founder of BlockseBlock, recently shared an incident on LinkedIn involving one of his students who had received an offer letter from a startup quoting a salary of Rs 18 lakh per annum (LPA).
However, when Thakur broke down the numbers, the headline figure quickly fell apart.
According to him, the fixed base salary in the offer was just Rs 6 LPA. The remaining Rs 12 LPA was made up of multiple conditional components. This included a Rs 4 LPA performance bonus, payable only if the employee achieved 120% of targets. “The catch is that targets are set by the manager and structured so that only around 10% of people actually meet them,” Thakur noted.
Another Rs 3 LPA was listed as a retention bonus, payable only after two years—provided the employee chose to stay that long. “Most people quit within 18 months,” he pointed out.
The remaining Rs 5 LPA was offered in ESOPs, calculated at the company’s current valuation and vesting over four years. Thakur warned that unless the company exits or goes public, those shares could end up being worth nothing.
“So what the candidate really gets is Rs 50,000 per month,” Thakur wrote. “That’s Rs 6 LPA. Not Rs 18 LPA.”
Summing it up, he said the offer effectively guaranteed Rs 6 LPA, while the remaining Rs 12 LPA was “imaginary.”
Thakur criticised companies for inflating cost-to-company (CTC) figures using bonuses that are hard to achieve and equity that may never materialise. “Rs 18 LPA looks far better than Rs 6 LPA on LinkedIn. Most freshers don’t ask for a detailed breakup—they just see the big number and say yes,” he said.
He added that he explained the math clearly to the student: “You’re not making Rs 18 LPA. You’re making Rs 6 LPA with a lottery ticket.”
Thakur also offered advice to fresh graduates evaluating job offers. He urged them to ask for a detailed CTC breakup, distinguish between guaranteed and conditional pay, ignore ESOPs unless a company is close to an IPO, and stop comparing headline CTC figures with peers.
“What actually hits your bank account—that’s your real salary,” he said.
