I own and operate Hawaiian Chip Company, a taro and sweet potato chip maker in Kalihi. We have 18 employees and are struggling to keep everyone employed even now, with less than half the normal volume of business. To hear that lawmakers are considering raising the minimum wage during this COVID-19 crisis is disheartening.

In my company, hardworking and reliable employees are not earning minimum wage. I start employees at minimum wage when they have little work experience or applicable skills. This allows employees the opportunity to enter the workforce and work their way up to any position they prove capable of handling. It also allows me to take a chance on individuals who may have been terminated from other jobs.

If I am required to raise wages across the board, I will need to raise prices, which will decrease demand and result in fewer hires and lower wages. I also compete with large factories serving much larger markets that can use economies of scale to undercut their prices. Manufacturers outside of Hawaii also pay less for raw materials because they are not limited by the geographic isolation a manufacturer in Hawaii faces.

It is also disheartening when some businesses assert that because their lowest starting wage is $15 an hour, all businesses should be able to do the same. These businesses should be commended for paying higher starting wages, but lawmakers should be mindful that this insinuates that all employees produce work valued at $15 an hour.

When an individual applies for a job with my company after being terminated, why should I take a chance on hiring that person for the same amount of money they made at their prior job, especially if I offer work that requires less skill and training? That person deserves a chance for employment with my company and an opportunity to work back up to $15 an hour. With only 2% unemployment prior to this pandemic, I and other manufacturers were able to give people with poor work histories a chance. If I am required to raise their wages, I will have to lay off these employees.

I am competing with taro and sweet potato chips made in South East Asia, China and other markets where labor is much cheaper. Raising Hawaii’s minimum wage would hurt my capacity to compete with those products on local store shelves. It would also drive up the cost of labor for local sweet potato farms. That cost would be forced to be passed on to me which, in turn, may force me to look for cheaper suppliers of sweet potato grown outside of Hawaii, hurting local farmers.

The narrative trying to paint small business owners as rich folks taking lots of time off for lavish vacations is false. The reality is that we often work more than anyone at the company and have everything to lose should the company fail. It is highly stressful running a small business and many other small business operators I know have been questioning whether it is even worth staying open long before this pandemic hit.

This debate should never have become a business versus employee discussion. We are a community all crippled by the same problem – housing and business space costs that are significantly more than almost anywhere else in the country.

I want to continue helping our economy by providing employment opportunities for a wide range of skills. However, my company has taken a financial beating with the disappearance of business from hotels, airlines and restaurants for the last three months, and recovery will be slow. Implementing a mandatory raise during this crisis, would force my business to shutdown permanently.

Jimmy Chan is general manager/owner of Hawaiian Chip Company.