Overcharging, Underpaying - Blame the Government Not the Employer

Weighing Jobs and Deficit
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB125894389767760063.html#articleTabs%3Darticle

Perhaps a look at the jobs forest would be better than looking at the jobs trees?

For example: The electrical contractor hires an electrician. The salary is $100 for the electrician. But, the employer has to pay social security, medicare, unemployment, workmen's compensation, now healthcare, etc. So, the employer needs to charge someone using the electrician's services $300 - let's say for the day or hour.

Now the electrician, who nominally has a salary of $100, he/she also has to pay taxes for social security, etc. plus income taxes. Let's say the electrician takes home a net spendable salary of $60. So $240 has gone to taxes and benefits that the government has decided the electrician should be paying and contributing to.

Now - the electrician himself/herself would like to hire a plumber. But, the plumber has the same cost structure as the electrician - i.e. the electrician will have to pay the plumbing contractor $300 per hour or day for the services of the plumber. BUT THE ELECTRICIAN ONLY TAKES HOME $60 to pay the $300.

In other words, it's more than likely the electrician will try and do the plumbing himself or herself (or just not have the job done at all)!

As such, the society loses productivity (and gross domestic product).

Almost all the policies of the administration are geared to widening this gap between what the worker should earn and what the worker takes home.

One way out would be to make it possible for all workers to be independent contractors and to remove any required contributions to anything but a minimal social security and medicare. If they do contribute their level of contribution would be reflected in their final payout.

Also, for health insurance - let the private insurance industry come up with some bare bones policies. These would be much more like the cheapest health plans offered in Europe.

If something isn't done, the US economy will find it very difficult to add jobs when the competing economies (and we're not talking Europe here) avoid this huge labor conundrum where society takes so much of the income paid to the worker.