After the fiasco of the closed terraces during the Grand Prix weekend, The newspaper tells us that the Montreal Fire Safety Service (SIM) causes other victims. Kiosks had to be dismantled at the Mural Festival and others are threatened for an upcoming fair in Hochelaga-Maisonneuve.
These weeks, the SIM is under surveillance due to its highly publicized intervention during the Grand Prix. But ultimately, this is only one example, among several, of interventions by government organizations which put a spoke in the wheels of SMEs.
The misery of restaurateurs, the distress of many small traders or the anger of farmers have this thing in common: bureaucracy is expensive. The countless rules imposed by public administrations are very expensive, in terms of time and money. To the point of making the difference between surviving or perishing in small business life.
Noble intentions
Governments always impose these regulations based on fine principles. In parliament or at city hall, very good causes will be put forward to justify state intervention.
In the name of environmental protection, safety and progressive taxation, governments will issue new regulations. The more you add, the more complex it becomes. Norms, exceptions, strict rules. So much so that one fine evening we ended up closing terraces for 52 centimeters.
There are therefore thousands of pages of laws and rules that are imposed on businesses, even the smallest, even those that are struggling to make ends meet.
However, for a regulation to be applied, someone has to be in charge. Our governments then hire civil servants whose task will be to monitor the compliance of companies and sanction the wrongdoers.
Two worlds
This is where two planets collide. The civil servant, with his lifelong job security, assured of his salary and pension, arrives in an SME where every dollar must be earned on performance. Where nothing is assured.
Fewer customers this week? The company is making losses. Fewer customers all year round? The company closes its doors. A 50-year-old entrepreneur goes bankrupt, he has undoubtedly just lost his investment, his efforts of recent years… and his pension fund.
The official of the CNESST, of the Ministry of the Environment or of Revenue, just like the municipal inspector, must understand this. When he walks around with his measuring tape, he must understand the reality of SMEs.
When he imposes a fine of $2,000 on a hamburger stand, he must think that at one dollar of profit per burger, he will have to sell 2,000 to pay the damn fine. Maybe three weeks’ profits!
I sincerely believe that all civil servants who are given the immense power to punish companies should be subject to training on the reality of SMEs.
