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April 4, 2023
Dana Casto of Udder Tech: “Lawmakers Need to Understand, This Would Kill Small Business
Minnesota Small Business Owner: Paid Family Leave Tax Hike Would be Devastating

Dana Casto and her mom Cheryl Mohn hold up their first product, the Towel Tote.
Cheryl’s daughter Dana joined her mom at the small business in 2015. “It’s fun to be back and in the family business,” Casto said. “I grew up milking and working in the barn alongside my parents. We would take customer calls in the barn. People could hear the milker pump in the background, and we would jot down order notes on the back of breeder cards.” However, both Cheryl and Dana are worried that if the 24-week paid family and medical leave proposal making its way through committees at the Capitol in St. Paul becomes law, the increased cost in the form of a payroll tax would be devastating. Mohn fears that the payroll tax will only continue to increase in cost year after year.
Dana Casto holds up an example of one of her milking aprons.
“I’m worried about the increased cost and paying for leave for people who are just looking to be paid to not work. The limitations on who can take the leave and for how long are very open. We likely wouldn’t have many employees who would utilize it. The cost we will be paying as a business will be going for other companies employees. We could better allocate those funds to spend on our own employees as things arise. This proposal takes away the incentive for people to work towards something. If they can take up to 20 weeks of paid leave from the first day they start work and anyone can get the benefit, then what’s the incentive for them to stay at that job?” The inspiration to start Udder Tech came in 1994. A dairy farming neighbor and friend asked Mohn to mend a bag he used while milking to hold his paper towels for udder prep.
Cheryl works on one of the more than 60 products that Udder Tech ships all over the world.
“He hung it over his shoulder like a purse. I looked at it and thought it would be pretty slick if you had it for your waist and then had loops for the teat dip cups. Everything could be in one spot,” Mohn said. “It would save me time. I wouldn’t have to go to the wash cart between every cow.” She also thought it would improve hygiene. “If you had an extra towel, you would use it. If you had to get up and go to the cart for another one you would probably say forget it,” Mohn said. With the idea in mind, Mohn got some denim fabric and went to her sewing machine to whip her invention together. Then she used it for milking that night. “It cut about 20 minutes to a half hour off milking time that first night on 50 cows,” Mohn said. She made a few more and handed them out to neighbors. “I went back a few weeks later to see if they would give it up, and they said no. That made me think it was a marketable item,” Mohn said. Then, Udder Tech developed an apron with sleeves and front pockets for cloth towels. One of their best sellers is now their waterproof bib overalls. However, Casto worries that if this new mandate passes in St. Paul, it will not only cost her thousands of dollars in additional taxes but would also disrupt their positive working relationship with Udder Tech employees. “To pay for the proposal not only would the government tax small business owners, but the employee as well. That’s very deceitful because most employees aren’t aware of this new tax that will cut into their paychecks. Our workers are like family to us. We have had family situations arise before and we sit down and figure out how to help them the best we can. A one size fits all approach to paid family leave just doesn’t work for small business owners. We know how to run our businesses and care for our employees. Stop giving us expensive government mandates,” said Casto. The paid family leave proposal is a $1.5 billion tax on small business owners and makes life even harder for those who are struggling with inflation, worker shortages and inflation. You can find out more about the take hike and how you can make your voice heard in St. Paul here.
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