> For example, we bought a company, and over the next year or so doubled wages in that company. Our "social responsibility" in that case was to spend shareholder money so that workers had a living wage. That doesn't seem to be the story I hear about say Amazon. Yes, we've also spent money outside of those 3 groups. We contribute to charity.
I would suggest that there is also some degree of (subconscious?) expectation of higher wages meaning: staff would be happier/performance would be higher/staff retention would be better/absence would be lower.
You weren't just giving (shareholder) money away. You were trying to optimise your team.
Yes, of course. We expect that creating a happier environment where people are well paid, will naturally lead to better productivity and happier customers. And yes, that will ultimately benefit shareholders.
Not that everyone stays forever. People come and go, just like in any business.
As an aside, I'd also say that the "happy bump" employees get from raises (even substantial raises) does not really last. It's not like it's all rainbows and unicorns just because you pay folk a decent wage. After a while there's pretty much the same level of complaints as before. You can't please everyone all the time.