I think quibbling about terminology misses the point. If you think about it as the total cost per employee, it seems like a a lot that doesn't actually go directly to the employee as take-home pay. I think a lot of that is good, and replaces other external costs, but it's still a lot of extra money a small company will need to budget just to hire someone.

And things like tax credits are only useful if you have the cash on hand immediately, and can wait up to a year to get it back. A brand-new venture may not have that.