Doesn't that apply to all sorts of employee compensation? ISO's vs RSU's, employee stock purchase/matching programs, PTO options ("unlimited PTO" in particular can be bad for the employee), health insurance options, 401k contributions.
All can have big financial impacts to employees, and employees need to understand them before they accept an offer. There's no reason to be surprised by the tax implications of 1099 vs W-2.
1099 isn't necessarily worse than W2, it opens more tax deductions for the employee, but also requires more bookeeping and the employee needs to understand what the difference is.
Many haven't yet, and many people can get "tricked" into it - there's a reason the government has to stomp on companies that try to 1099 everyone.