I believe I can help you. If you are able to hire enough well-qualified employees, then you are paying an adequate wage. If you have trouble hiring people, then you need to review your compensation/benefit levels. "Fair" is not an economic concept. It is a values judgment used to obscure the real issue. How do you define "fair"? If it "fair" to taxpayers to pay more than is necessary to get the job done? Isn't that the definition of "waste?"
Not quite. You don't like the first answer, so you ask again, hoping for a different one. Good luck with that.