Paid Family Leave Tax Hike Would Be Devastating Says This Small Business Owner
Cheryl Mohn is a dairy farm owner, working Mom, and the founder of the Towel Tote, a revolutionary device that makes milking cows more efficient for farmers. What started out as a great product has grown into a thriving business thirty years later that employs seven employees and ships more than 60 products in 43 countries.
Cheryl’s daughter, Dana, now works with her at the farm, naturally, after growing up milking and working in the barn with her parents. “It’s fun to be back and in the family business,” she said.
It has been a nice homecoming, but lately, both Cheryl and Dana are feeling uneasy. The Democrats’ Paid Family Leave bill threatens the future of their business. They are worried that the new payroll tax to pay for the new government bureaucracy will be devastating and the cost will only increase year after year.
“I’m worried about the increased cost and paying for leave for people who are just looking to be paid to not work. The limitations on who can take the leave and for how long are very open. We likely wouldn’t have many employees who would utilize it. The cost we will be paying as a business will be going for other companies employees. We could better allocate those funds to spend on our own employees as things arise. This proposal takes away the incentive for people to work towards something. If they can take up to 20 weeks of paid leave from the first day they start work and anyone can get the benefit, then what’s the incentive for them to stay at that job?”
Not only will Cheryl’s small business have to pay the price, but so will her employees. She is worried about what that will do to their workforce.
“To pay for the proposal not only would the government tax small business owners, but the employee as well. That’s very deceitful because most employees aren’t aware of this new tax that will cut into their paychecks. Our workers are like family to us. We have had family situations arise before and we sit down and figure out how to help them the best we can. A one size fits all approach to paid family leave just doesn’t work for small business owners. We know how to run our businesses and care for our employees. Stop giving us expensive government mandates,” said Casto.
The Democrats’ Paid Family Leave proposal will be devastating to Minnesota small businesses, entrepreneurs, and workers. At the steep price of $1.5 billion, this current proposal needs revisiting. It’s time for the DFL to work across the aisle and find an industry-led solution.
You can read more about Cheryl’s story by clicking here.