If you work for a company that pays you cash money only, you can buy their shares in a brokerage account (taxable or tax-advantaged). If you work for a company that does RSUs, you have to wait for vesting, and it's not consistent money; it's nice when the stock price is going up, and it's not nothing when it's going down like options are, but if it's a publically traded company, why not just pay me the $x/year in dollars and I'll do what I think is right. (Which, for me, isn't going to be holding the stock of my employer directly; I've got enough exposure to them through my paycheck and index funds, thanks.)