Who makes less than minimum wage? Small business owners

By Trent England | Freedom Foundation

Thursday’s Wall Street Journal reports about small business owners losing their health insurance, or facing expensive rate increases, thanks to Obamacare.

Several thousand of the nation’s smallest business owners—sole proprietors and the self-employed—were kicked off their small-business plans by carriers earlier this year. That is because new guidelines define “employers” as having at least two full-time employees, not including a spouse, in order to be eligible for group plans.

In all, more than 78% of the estimated 28 million small businesses in the U.S. have no employees, according to the Small Business Administration. These business owners must now seek coverage as individuals, or face fines.

Not mentioned in the article is a relevant fact about sole proprietors and other small business owners: many of them also earn less than minimum wage. These people are left out of the minimum wage conversation and victimized by minimum wage increases.

at Freedom Foundation.