Small businesses increased employee headcount by 0.3% in 2005. That's significantly less than the 4.4% growth we experienced in 2004.
The national SurePayroll Hiring Index, which measures the number of employees within small businesses, ended December at 10,466, exactly where the index stood at the end of November. We closed 2004 at 10,435.
Prior to December's flat month, we had had three consecutive months of lower hiring numbers. We'll have to wait until 2006 to see if small business hiring stays flat, zooms up or shoots down.
Small business salaries decreased by 0.5% in 2005. In 2004, small business salaries dropped 4.8% on average.
Small business paychecks were up in December, for the fourth month in a row. The SurePayroll Pay Index clocked in at 948 at the end of December, an 8-point increase from November.
The monthly SurePayroll Scorecard data for December 2005 can be found in the table below:
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About the Scorecard
The SurePayroll Hiring Index and the SurePayroll Pay Index are generated as part of SurePayroll’s Small Business Scorecard, an economic indicator that tracks the health of the U.S. small business economy. The Small Business Scorecard is generated from actual payroll data — paychecks issued to contractors and employees — for tens of thousands of small businesses nationwide.
Questions regarding the SurePayroll Small Business Scorecard can be directed to Michael Alter. Michael can be reached at malter@surepayroll.com or by phone at 847.676.8420 ext. 7229.
Small Business Scorecards Archive:
