The first programming job I had I constantly had a pile of uncashed paychecks on my desk, and I wasn't the only one. Cool problems were way more interesting than money. The industry beats that out of you eventually, but I don't think the tech industry is going to have to worry about the peasants revolting for a long time. There are always more coming. And at least they're getting paid something, most industries where the work is an end in itself for a lot of workers have realized they don't even need to pay the new blood.
I wonder. The paychecks were yours. They were in your possession. They may have been neglected and they may not have been your prime motivator, but they were a concrete thing that formalized the pact between your time and their growth. They handed you the carrot. Whether or not you had a bite isn't the point. This new generation is being told tales of carrots.