George Will , “conservative political pundit” is mostly a RINO – which makes him weak on freedom and liberty issues (we “rubes” simply can’t be left to our own devices) – but fairly reliable when it comes to economic matters. In any case, his article yesterday in the New York Post was heavy on facts and light on opinion, so I’m reasonably confident we’re getting an objective analysis here.
In “… and ObamaCare kills jobs, too”, Will details the adverse effect that the new healthcare legislation will have on just one company – CKE Restaurants (Carl’s Jr. & Hardees) – a business that accounts for some 70,000 jobs nationwide.
When CKE’s health care advisers, citing ObamaCare’s complexities, opacities and uncertainties, said it would add between $7.3 million and $35.1 million to the company’s $12 million health care costs in 2010, Puzder (CKE’s CEO) said: I need a number I can plan with. They guessed $18 million — twice what CKE spent last year building new restaurants. ObamaCare must mean fewer restaurants…
…The health-care benefits under CKE’s current “mini-med” plans are capped in a way that makes them illegal under ObamaCare. So CKE will have to convert many full-time employees to part-timers to limit the growth of its burdens under ObamaCare.
Heritages’ Foundry arrives at the same conclusion about the punitive nature of the new healthcare law, and reports that in Michigan, Obamacare is Already a Job-Killer.
Beginning in 2013, the new legislation targets medical device manufacturers, a business segment that currently employs roughly 400,000 Americans, for a significant tax increase:
…the new 2.3% excise tax will roughly double the device industry’s total tax bill and raise the average effective corporate income tax rate to one the highest effective tax rates faced by any industry in the world.
I guess this must be the Preventing Innovation in the Medical Technology Field clause of Obamacare!
Anticipating the adverse effect that the higher tax will have on their bottom line, Stryker Corporation of Michigan, an orthopedic device manufacturer, has announced that it will layoff 5% of its workforce by 2013. That represents at least 110 employees just in Kalamazoo – where the company is headquartered. Doesn’t sound like many, but it will only help push Michigan’s 11% unemployment rate even higher.
Ultimately, Obamacare will have such a detrimental impact on job growth and the overall health of our economy you’d almost think the administration prescribed it that way 😈 … Nah.
