Woe is me.

The Secretary of State is urging business owners to offer a paid holiday for Election Day. Elections are a privilege, an honor and a responsibility to all American citizens. A politician who offers a paid holiday for something we should all take responsibility — has never owned a business.

State employees will take the holiday. No one can blame them. If all government employees are given a paid day off, guess how much it would cost us? The answer is millions. An article by USA Today using Bureau of Labor statistics, Michigan employed 607,000 government workers in 2017. In small communities, one out of every three government jobs is in local government. (Local budgets) https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/economy/2018/06/01/states-where-the-most-people-work-for-government/35302753/.

Wayne State University jumped on board (2019, superintendent of WSU salary was $484,000 according to the Mackinaw Center). Classes canceled for the day (mom and dad pay tuition) all but essential employees will have the day off. Taxpayers carry the burden.

A small business who has five full time employees at $10 an hour will have a burden of $400 in pay, add benefits and operating cost, all lost that day. How many hamburgers will he/she have to sell to make up for lost revenue.? How many bouquets of flowers? With profit of pennies each? Chances are most small businesses will not offer a paid holiday. No one can blame them.

The SOS doesn’t have to make up the millions. She just raids the taxpayers’ coffers.

More worrisome is the Democratic state legislator pushing legislation to make Election Day a paid day off for everyone. Wonderful to have a paid day off, but at whose expense?

Government should not interfere with the marketplace nor private industry. Governments’ responsibility is limited to governing, (law and order), protecting its citizens.

KAREN PETTALIA,

Presque Isle