You're on a forum for tech workers and tech entrepreneurs. Going "you're privileged, gotcha!" doesn't carry much water when it's true of literally the entire target demographic. You are right, we are lucky: our industry is in demand, so don't squander it by pretending you're up against insurmountable odds at the negotiating table. All you're doing by rolling over for your employer is weakening everybody else's negotiating position.
If my employer wants to change the terms of my employment, I absolutely would make sure I actually agreed to the changes before doing anything else. If I didn't I'd refuse to sign anything, and leave the employer with the choice to either A) fire me (under the terms of the old contract) B) leave me with the old agreement C) fire me under the new terms and get sued or D) come back with a better offer.
This is tech. There's no shortage of jobs for people with any experience whatsoever. That's leverage in not getting railed in your employment terms.
If my employer wants to change the terms of my employment, I absolutely would make sure I actually agreed to the changes before doing anything else. If I didn't I'd refuse to sign anything, and leave the employer with the choice to either A) fire me (under the terms of the old contract) B) leave me with the old agreement C) fire me under the new terms and get sued or D) come back with a better offer.
This is tech. There's no shortage of jobs for people with any experience whatsoever. That's leverage in not getting railed in your employment terms.