Our Research: Workforce
While small business owners spend their days concentrating on whatever their particular specialty is--be it marketing services, dry cleaning or landscaping, there's one thing they all have in common: they have to contend with a host of larger issues ranging from employee pay and benefits, medical leave issues, nondiscrimination and more. These are issues they deal with often times on a daily basis, which means they know better than most what kind of solutions would be helpful when shaping public policy. The topics below clearly outline small business owners' opinions on these important workforce topics.
Entrepreneurs continue to navigate a number of challenges operating their businesses, more than two years since the COVID-19 pandemic started. Small Business Majority and Start Small Think Big surveyed small business owners and managers in their networks to understand their current business conditions, how they are faring amid rising inflation, and what they need to maintain and grow their businesses over the next six months to a year.
As entrepreneurs continue to navigate a number of challenges operating their businesses, Small Business Majority surveyed small business owners and managers nationwide to understand their current business conditions and how they may have benefited from federal relief programs. The survey found that nearly two-thirds (65%) of small businesses felt more optimistic about their business prospects for this year's second quarter. Despite this optimism, small businesses are facing a number of challenges, including inflation, supply chain disruptions and workforce shortages.
From ongoing supply chain disruptions to new fears surrounding potential impacts stemming from new coronavirus variants, small business owners continue to face uncertainty about the future of their businesses. A new survey from Small Business Majority sheds a light on how supply chain disruptions are impacting small businesses during the crucial fourth quarter, as well as their views on the Biden administration’s COVID-19 vaccination requirement for businesses with 100 or more employees, and key components in the Build Back Better plan that are being negotiated in the U.S. Senate.
The federal government is implementing a series of new COVID-19 vaccination requirements to mitigate the impacts of the recent surge in COVID-19 cases. A new Small Business Majority opinion poll reveals that a majority of small businesses with employees are supportive of vaccination requirements at places of business, while many have already implemented vaccine policies on their own.
California lawmakers are weighing a proposal to require proof of COVID-19 vaccination or a negative test for customers at consumer-facing businesses and to similarly require employers to mandate vaccinations or negative COVID-19 tests for employees. New opinion polling from Small Business Majority reveals that small businesses in California are supportive of proposals to mandate vaccinations and testing at places of business to help ensure local economies can operate safely, amid setbacks from the current surge in COVID-19 cases.
As lawmakers in Washington consider a robust budget reconciliation package to invest in “human infrastructure” and debate how to pay for this plan, Small Business Majority surveyed small business owners and managers of operations at small businesses around the country to better understand their views on our tax system, as well as their opinions on tax policies that have been proposed to offset the costs of the human infrastructure plan.
As Congress debates a bipartisan infrastructure plan and a larger $3.5 trillion investment in “human infrastructure,” Small Business Majority surveyed its network to understand their views on key issues being considered such as child care and paid family and medical leave.
The COVID-19 pandemic has strained Georgia’s economy and public health system, while small businesses across the state continue to face significant financial setbacks that are hampering their recovery. A new survey sheds light on the state of small business in Georgia, as well as their views on policy solutions that can boost their businesses and provide important support to their employees.
Nearly a year into the COVID-19
On October 21, Small Business Majority released a new report on small business challenges in hiring and training employees in California and their struggles accessing the broader workforce development ecosystem. The report reveals findings from an online survey of small business owners across the state, as well as separate focus group discussions, interviews and other convenings that provide insights into the ways small business owners approach hiring and training. It also provides recommendations for stakeholders to better engage their local small employers.
