The More Businesses Learn About Obamacare, The More Reluctant They Are To Hire

3 Comments

1. I understand plight of small businessman. But for big firms-no. These days it is no pension, no health insurance, no sick leave, no paid holidays , either too few hours or too many hours all for $9 an hour – take it or leave it. Profits are at record highs. We need to share the wealth with decent wages which avoids sharing the wealth with welfare. The American worker is perhaps as exploited as much now as in any time in history.

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2. I like your line about “share the wealth with decent wages which avoids sharing the wealth with welfare”. There is truth in that, but it looses potency if the government does not cooperate to foster a pro-business environment. Remember, the economy is not a zero sum game. It can grow in real terms, not just in relative terms. It is government that holds that back. The feds can’t create wealth or growth but they can suppress it with bad policy, over-regulation and oppressive taxes.

   I would take your thought a step further: Want jobs and higher wages? Then move towards substantive tax reform. I think it is fair to say that all “big firms” started as small businesses once upon a time. Are they suddenly bad because they got to be a certain size? Is not the goal to grow? Tax and fiscal policy should be pro-business from smallest to largest.

   Remember, only individuals actual pay taxes. Corporations may write a check on April 15th the IRS, but they just pass the tax on in the form of higher product costs, lower dividends, lower cap gains, or lower wages/benefits. Individuals, however, can’t pass the buck to anyone else. So, every time we demand that a corporation pay their “fair share” of taxes, we cause our cost of living to go up or our investments/wages/benefits to go down. That is the cruelest tax of all, because it hits those who can least afford it and they have no way to avoid it.

   As to the role of big firms, approximately 180 million people/families get health insurance from a “larger” employer, as well as many other benefits. Estimates suggest that the ACA could result in anywhere from a 30 – 60% reduction in the number of workers that are offered health insurance in the workplace. We are already starting to see that prediction unfold. Example UPS and others

   A basic tenant of economics is this:
   If you subsidize something, you get more of it. If you tax something (profits, innovation, exploration, investment, jobs, wages) then you get less of if it. Our tax system is bought and paid for by special interest groups, each with their own agenda. The aggregate effect is an anti-growth, anti-investment, anti-savings, anti-job creating behemoth we call the tax code. Way too much effort goes into avoiding onerous taxes, as opposed to everyone just paying a non-painful small amount based on consumption or a flat % of income at a certain point beyond poverty level.

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3. Another idea to increase employment – “if you sell it here , you must make it here” This would still allow foreign investment and profit from US economy but keep jobs here. Thanks for thorough response and will follow with interest.

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