According to a lawyer in the family, small firms (e.g. less than 20 staff, depending upon locality) are often exempt from some requirements that apply to larger firms. It's a potentially important reason for some firms to stay smaller to be more agile.
Interesting. A lot of the small business owners I talk to with less than 20 employees I think are simply going to try and cut back, cash flow as much as they can, and save for the uncertain future.
in the 2010s I had a business, solo, for 5 years. It was really hard to find even one other worker. Everyone seemed to be overspecialized. I can completely relate to minimizing staff. One bad hire and you lose everything, potentially.