They're explaining to you what it means to be "in operation", not that these are eligible for PPP.
ii. you were in operation on February 15, 2020,
and either had employees for whom
you paid salaries and payroll taxes or paid independent contractors,
I dont think to be in operation you have to pay any employees or pay yourself, if you bought something for $100 and sold it for $100 or $90 you were in operation even you didn't had any profit and didn't pay any payroll.
It clearly states that #1 you were in operation #2 AND you paid employees
I agree that they probably won't count just it seems there as a drafting error