These days, many small businesses across the country are likely finding themselves in better financial positions than they faced even a year ago. The improving economy has increased revenues for many such companies, but it seems that a large number are still very wary about bringing on new employees despite the gains. Now, some experts are looking into why.
Recent polls suggest as little as 20 percent or 25 percent of small businesses are hiring, and that number has largely held steady for at least a year, despite the fact that the economy continues to grow more robust and many independent firms are in better standing these days, according to a report from the Associated Press. However, it seems that the reasons for this reticence remain somewhat myriad.
One common cause for a lack of hiring is that small businesses are interviewing people and genuinely want to expand, but have not been able to find candidates they deem qualified for the positions that are open, the report said. This may also be a problem because, with the improving economy generally comes people being choosier about the jobs they take, and many smaller firms might not be able to offer the perks that larger competitors can.
What else is an issue?
Further, it seems that companies are still somewhat iffy on whether they’re going to be able to bring aboard more workers because of increasing competition in their areas potentially taking away incoming business, the report said. Others plan to only hire if they think their current employees are going to end up working a little harder than they need to, and still more have been restrained from doing so by a general lack of access to more financing. Data shows that banks are generally still being pretty tight with the kinds of funds they’ll extend to small businesses in particular, and that might be something that concerns a large number of entrepreneurs nationwide these days.
Owners who want to improve their chances for success overall – and when it comes to being approved for financing – might want to consider the ways in which they can shore up their companies’ bottom lines. That might include finding more affordable small business insurance, such as policies for liability insurance. Doing so could end up saving firms as much as a few thousand dollars per year or more.
