Entrepreneurs have started up the fewest new U.S. businesses in more than a decade, according to government figures that could spell more bad news for job creation.
Through the 12 months ended in March of last year, 505,473 new businesses started up in the U.S., according to the latest data available from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. That's the weakest growth since the bureau started tracking the data in the early 1990s. It's down sharply from the record 667,341 new businesses added in the 12 months that ended in March 2006.
Weak start-up growth has dire implications for jobs because small and midsize businesses have driven employment gains in the U.S. for years. Between the recession that ended in late 2001 and the start of the most recent recession in late 2007, businesses that employed fewer than 500 workers added nearly 7 million employees, according to data collected by payroll provider ADP, which tracks employment trends.
To read the full, original article click on this link: Small businesses, crucial to growth, face challenges - USATODAY.com
Author:
Scott Patterson
