Hiring, Healthcare, and Small Business

Recently, the Manta SMB Wellness Index found that many small business owners said they were planning to hire at this time last year, but the most of them (80 percent) have not. The survey also found that 45 percent do not plan to hire additional workers this year while one-third say it's too early to tell.

Further, more than half of small businesses (53 percent) say they are not taking advantage of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act healthcare tax credit, which took effect in 2010 for small businesses with fewer than 25 full-time employees. One in three small business owners say that don't understand the law and its requirements, and nearly one in four say they aren't sure how the legislation will impact their company. Half say it hasn't impacted them and 14 percent say the effects have been negative.

The Manta SMB Wellness Index found that 42 percent of small businesses feel the economy is not really in recovery. New business activity fell 30 percent in the first three months of 2012, compared to the same time last year. More than four in 10 small business owners say taxes are more complicated this year than in previous years, and more than 30 percent report that they owed more money in taxes this year than last year.

However, entrepreneurship still continues, and many small companies aren't letting factors they can't control—like high gas prices or the unstable economy—stand in the way of building their business in new ways. Our Biz2Credit platform received a record number of registrations from small business owners looking for startup funding, working capital, equipment loans, and lines of credit. And our most recent Biz2Credit Small Business Lending Index found that lending slowed only at big banks in March (and that drop came after months of increases.)

Small business continues to be a main growth engine in the economy. While the climate is not red hot, it is certainly quite warm.