It’s not nitpicking, stuff like this is far more impactful than choosing between 5 lines vs 10 lines long methods, or whether the hasExtraCommissions
“if
” belongs inside or outside of calculateExtraCommissions
. This kind of thing should immediately jump out at you as a red flag when you’re reading code, it’s not something to handwave away as a detail.
He’s basically just whining about his competition being able to attract more talent by offering better conditions that he doesn’t want to compete with.
It’s no different than complaining that the competition has a better/cheaper product and people are not buying yours.