If the employee doesn't get it, it doesn't go to another employee, it goes to the shareholders. Words like "entitlement" are just the wrong concepts for that situation. "Those greedy Googlers, putting themselves before the shareholder's returns" just doesn't have a ring to it.
In fact, because of supply and demand, if Google competes less for labor, the pay at non-tech companies will go down. This hurts people lower down the ladder.
At least some companies recognize there's little difference between the amount of value provided by a top engineer vs, say, a law firm. I think the gap needs to be closed even further, I plan to double my rates again over the next 1-2 years.