Health benefits as the enemy of retirement benefits?

Small businesses have low rates of employer-sponsored retirement plans. Is health care coverage the culprit? From a Wall Street Journal article on retirement benefits:

Many business owners say they can't afford to fund both retirement and health benefits, and that their employees prefer health coverage.

Mike Sincavage owns an excavation company in Blakeslee, Pa., that employs five workers. Health-insurance costs jumped 27% this year, he said, not leaving much money to offer other benefits. Having health coverage is important to his workers, he said, as well as being able to maximize take-home pay.