You Cannot Tax a Corporation

Over at the Daily Dish, a reader is upset about people collecting unemployment insurance:

I have to correct the reader who wrote that since he paid unemployment tax throughout the years, he should not feel guilty about claiming unemployment benefits. The reality is that employers pay unemployment taxes, not employees.

And where do you think the money for the employer to pay the taxes comes from? Let's quickly switch over to an idea that was popular in the summer of 2008, increased taxes on oil companies. According to The Tax Foundation:

The U.S. debate over which group of people — workers, shareholders or consumers — ends up paying the bulk of these corporate taxes will go on forever. But the undisputed and most important point is that individuals pay taxes, not corporations. Therefore, attempts to punish oil companies for "obscene" profits by instituting additional taxes ultimately cause all of us to pay the price.

I would imagine that for a tax that is levied per worker (such as unemployment insurance), the cost will be borne mostly by workers. Even if the workers do not see the effect immediately (in a lower income), they will see it over time in the form of reduced wage growth.