NEW YORK (AP) As the U.S. economy undergoes an uneven recovery from the virus pandemic, many small business owners face a tough decision on whether and when
New York
As the United States economy undergoes an uneven recovery from the virus pandemic, many small business owners face a tough decision on whether and when to take on employees.
The pandemic forced Meghan Gardner to let go of 16 staffers at Guardian Adventures, which ran educational summer camps, part of an industry decimated by the virus outbreak. While Ms. Gardner got a Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan and ran online camps during the summer, by October she couldn’t afford to pay her employees.
Ms. Gardner would like to build her company back up, but the virus is still raging and the future for children’s group activities is still uncertain. She’s worried about the summer of 2021 being a repeat of 2020.
For many owners, it’s a question of how comfortable customers will feel about gathering in places like restaurants, stores and gyms. Retailers don’t know yet how much business they’ve permanently lost to online competitors. For owners starting over, it’s too soon to know if their brand-new companies will be successful enough to take on employees.
Small businesses accounted for 47% of employment at U.S. companies, according to the most recent business census, in 2017. When payroll company ADP reported the pandemic forced the loss of 19 million jobs at its business customers in April, more than 10 million of those workers, or 52%, were let go by companies with fewer than 500 workers.
Businesses face hard decisions on whether, when to hire
by Joyce M. Rosenberg, The Associated Press
Posted Feb 4, 2021 3:00 am EDT
Last Updated Feb 4, 2021 at 3:14 am EDT
NEW YORK As the U.S. economy undergoes an uneven recovery from the virus pandemic, many small businesses owners face a tough decision on whether and when to take on employees.
The pandemic forced Meghan Gardner to let go of 16 staffers at Guardian Adventures, which ran educational summer camps, part of an industry decimated by the virus outbreak. While Gardner got a Paycheck Protection Program loan and ran online camps during the summer, by October she couldn’t afford to pay her employees.
Joyce M. Rosenberg
In this Tuesday, Nov. 27, 2018, photo, a bartender talks to a customer at the Gotham Bar and Grill in New York. The Manhattan upscale restaurant hopes to reopen by summer 2021 if government regulations permit, but will likely have just 35 staffers instead of the 100 the restaurant had before it closed in March 2020. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer) February 04, 2021 - 1:51 AM
NEW YORK - As the U.S. economy undergoes an uneven recovery from the virus pandemic, many small businesses owners face a tough decision on whether and when to take on employees.
The pandemic forced Meghan Gardner to let go of 16 staffers at Guardian Adventures, which ran educational summer camps, part of an industry decimated by the virus outbreak. While Gardner got a Paycheck Protection Program loan and ran online camps during the summer, by October she couldnât afford to pay her employees.