Here's one of the points of stock: If you want a stake in a company you have to buy it (it can't just be given to you). A lot of employees don't have the cash on hand to buy stock so companies issue options instead. And even if they did, they'd risk loosing that money. You can't loose money on an option.

Here's another: Startups can get in trouble for selling stock to people who aren't 'accredited investor' (basically means "already rich"). This is changing, but it's still a problem.