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I don't understand this expectation that employees work more, and stigma if you go home on time, yet we don't have a corresponding stigma for when the amount of money that reaches my account is "only" what we agreed my salary would be.

Companies that try to demand extreme hours with average pay have very high turnover.

As employees realize they’re getting a bad deal and that they can find a better ratio of pay to hours worked at other companies, they leave.

Sure, but why does this rhetoric both persist, and only go one way? You never hear anything about an expectation from employers to pay more than what was agreed.

If I'm an employee with miniscule equity, why would I put in any more time and effort than what was agreed?

Are you actually agreeing to specific hours? For example, in a contract, as an hourly worker, or with some formal arrangement with the company?

If so, then yes you should only work those hours.

However, if you’re a typical full-time employee in most countries you don’t have agreed upon hours.

> If I'm an employee with miniscule equity, why would I put in any more time and effort than what was agreed?

Again, if something was agreed upon you should follow that. In most full-time jobs they’re not going to specify a maximum number of working hours. It’s your job to explain what can be done in a workweek and push back when something can’t be done. If it persists and you don’t like it then you find another job. Vote with your feet.