December 2008 Regional Small Business Trends

On a regional basis, small business hiring was up in 2008 in every region except the West, where hiring is down 0.8%. The Northeast led the nation in hiring growth, with a 10.1% increase.

With respect to small business salary trends, salaries decreased in 2008 in every region except the West, where salaries ended up 5.3%. The South has had the steepest drops in small business salaries, dropping 9.2% in 2008.

December Regional Data
Below is the monthly SurePayroll Scorecard data for each region for December.

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.