1/7) I’ve posted this scenario a few times before. I’m not saying minimum wage does or doesn’t need to be increased, I’m saying I’m a small business owner & I also grew up working at our family business & this is the scenario whether we like it or not. Read below:

2/7) Bob, a self employed heating & air guy, started his business from scratch, risked his own money, worked 60 hours per week (oftentimes for less than minimum wage because that’s how it goes when you’re trying to get a business off the ground), he doesn’t sleep at night due...

3/7) to stress from the business & everything else comes with being a business owner. He’s 3 years in & has built his business up to the point that he needs 2 entry level employees so he hires John & Jeff. Bob clears $35,000/yr after payroll & other expenses, including his...

4/7) 2 employees that he pays $7.50/hr, slightly more than minimum wage. That comes out to $15,600/yr each, for a total of $31,200/yr in payroll. A year later the federal government steps in & forces Bob to pay John & Jeff $15/hr, which doubles his payroll to a total of...

5/7) $62,400, & it lowers Bob’s take-home pay to $3,800. Bob is now out of business & John & Jeff are out of a job. An entire business & 2 jobs are gone. But wait, Bob is still responsible for paying the bank note on his work building but he can’t because he’s out of business...

6/7) Now, on top of being out of business, Bob has to file bankruptcy. John & Jeff are looking for jobs but can’t find one because most other small businesses are in the same position as Bob, & most large companies have started using automation to combat the increase in...

7/7) payroll. With the stroke of a pen from the federal government, Bob is bankrupt & John & Jeff are on unemployment.