See anything wrong with paying employees in shares rather than selling the shares and giving them cash? NO
See anything wrong with giving NEW employees a stake in the company? NO
Those shares were all given well before the vote to increase A/S so I don't see how that relates.
Use some common sense, having some employees who have a stake in the company is better than someone who just shows up every week for a paycheck. They have a huge incentive to better the company.
When you see a company that the insiders don't want to own you should be concerned, not the case here.