Final answer:
The discussion is focused on estimating the costs associated with pay raises within the scope of HR and business, taking into account the efficiency wage theory and the relationship between wages and productivity.
Step-by-step explanation:
The question pertains to the field of compensation and HR which is within the sphere of business studies, specifically focusing on estimating the costs associated with pay raises. Adjustments of wages to productivity levels are not immediate or straightforward because productivity is often difficult to quantify, especially for jobs where output is not easily measured, such as the work done by an accountant in a large corporation's tax department. Considering this, employers who desire to motivate and retain their employees may tend toward the efficiency wage theory, which posits that higher wages can lead to increased productivity.
While the provided links and excerpts from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics highlight overall Employer Costs for Employee Compensation, they do not give us specific data necessary to calculate pay raises for different performance ratings. Consequently, we would need additional information regarding the percentage of increase per each category of employee performance.