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Posted on 03/09/2026 6:03:26 AM PDT by TigerClaws
A Minnesota House hearing about “misclassification of workers” at the State Capitol this week somehow turned into a kerfuffle about the “benefit of shoplifting.”
It happened during a presentation before the House Workforce, Labor and Economic Development Committee about worker misclassification. In short, a committee news release said, “worker misclassification is the illegal practice of treating employees as independent contractors to sidestep paying wages and benefits, while also cheating taxpayers.”
During the presentation, Republican Rep. Isaac Schultz asked if any studies have been done about employers having to pay higher wages and benefits, leading to higher prices.
“I wonder if, through your studies, if you have studied the impact of worker misclassification to consumers and taxpayers?” Schultz asked.
He was told they had not studied that and that state law requires workers to be properly classified. Schultz says he was not suggesting workers be “misclassified.” He says he just wants a full picture of what’s happening.
Minutes later, Rep. Dave Pinto, DFL-St. Paul, the committee co-chair, compared blaming higher work pay for causing higher prices to the impact shoplifting has on higher prices.
He started by mentioning a presentation on the impact of organized retail theft he’d heard in a public safety committee the day before.
“There was a presentation of a group seeking to change how we address organized retail theft,” he said. “And it actually had not occurred to me to ask, it probably would have been good, to make sure that they would study the benefit of shoplifting and of retail theft. Because perhaps people are relying on that and using that, and maybe it’s assisting them in some way.”
House Republicans immediately seized on the comment and posted it on social media along with commentary from Republican Floor Leader Rep. Harry Niska. “If you listen carefully to those comments, I think you understand why it is that Democrats have been so unserious about the billions of dollars of fraud that have been flowing out of our state,” Niska says in a recorded video on the X social media platform.
When asked for comment on Friday, Pinto declined to do an on-camera interview but issued a written statement to 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS.
“My comments, intended to be sarcastic, followed a line of questioning from Republican Rep. Isaac Schultz suggesting a study is needed on whether the illegal practice of worker misclassification harms consumers,” Pinto says in the statement. “As a prosecutor, of course, I take retail theft and shoplifting seriously. Any insinuation to the contrary is absurd – just like Rep. Schultz’s remarks were.”
The initial Republican post about Pinto’s comments on X had been viewed 63,000 times by early Friday evening and more than 100,000 additional views on re-postings.
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Minnesota is a very special state.
House Republicans immediately seized on the comment
Seized or Pounced?
I don’t understand his excuse.
Does worker misclassification harm consumers or not?
Astonishing. Simply astonishing.
I have long held the view that to understand Leftists, you only need to listen to the words that come out of their mouths. They think they are the smartest people in any room, and will eventually succumb to the temptation to brag about what they are really thinking, in the delusion that it will sound grand to normal people.
“Minnesota is a very special state.”
With VERY “special” people...
“Cheating taxpayers” - meaning “cheating THEM out of tax money. ‘Cause I love paying higher prices so that I can pay more taxes!
Pelosi’s sick vocabulary gives her away, as well. Reduced taxes are the government “giving” money away - since in her view, it is all theirs, anyway.
This is just wolves arguing over dinner. The sheep need guns.
It’s crystal clear that Democorrupts are unserious about crime, and essentially excuse it.
They are completely ignorant of economics. The very reason for “food deserts” and higher prices in “colored” areas with high crime is because retail merchants can’t stay in business unless prices allow them to.
Democrat elected officials have discussed giving pornography to young children for “educational purposes” and now say that shoplifting is “beneficial.”
It helps consumers by providing lower labor costs to the retailer. In the same way any illegal labor does.
“Minnesota is a very special state.”
The people of Minnesota are nice to a fault. Minnesota is a prime example of suicidal empathy.
If you are the kind of businessman who violates the laws to cut costs, you are very unlikely to pass your savings on to the customers. You will charge the same prices as legal businesses, and pocket the profits.
Add unions and trade licensing.
Rest of State is seeing what MSP wants and it’s not good.
Just look at the riots over the deaths of Renee not so Good and Alex Pretti stupid.
At all.
The question should then be asked about the benefits of public executions of government officials who are corrupt, incompetent and lazy.
What happened to Minnesota? One too many lakes?
Can shoplift up to $950 in CA with no repercussions.
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