People are not shopping in your store or eating at your restaurants because they have no money.

The very wealthy don't shop in your store.

ditto

I could look it up, but we have some members here with expertise on the subject who probably will be weighing in with their knowledge and insights.

up to a certain point.

Say twice the median income.

So roughly $100,000. For small companies that should mean they can deduct all the money used to pay all their employees as well as themselves.

companies already do, per se, as they are only taxed on profit...and salaries are an expense...

sP

to *only* allow them to deduct up to a certain point for wages.

For small companies being able to deduct all wages/benefits up to some reasonable amount (I just pulled 100k out of a hat, I'm not married to it) plus expenses, plus investment in infrastructure, and so on would effectively leave them paying no business taxes (federally).

It would then only hit large companies and only wages above that amount, savings, stock holders, and perhaps money spent on advertising (I am on the fence on that one).

/also only counting expenses/salaries paid here. Not in other countries.

And wage theft by employers should be considered felony theft and we should have protections put in place to allow unionization by employees.