Intuit: Small business employment is on the rise

6/1/2011

According to Intuit Payroll's Small Business Employment Index, entrepreneurs are continuing to hire more help as the busy summer months approach rapidly. More than 45,000 new jobs were created over the course of the month, with hiring in some major markets, such as New York, growing by 0.1 percent.

Since the end of last year, small companies have contributed nearly 700,000 jobs to the American labor market. However, the number of hours and wages offered by employers dipped during the month, indicating that small businesses are still dealing with after effects from the economic recession.

"As small business employers react to economic pressures driven by such factors as rising gas prices and natural disasters, we see the job market soften," said Susan Woodward, Intuit's economist. "Employers cut back on employee hours when they have less work for people to do."

Meanwhile, a separate report from CareerBuilder suggests more jobs will be created during the summer to meet greater consumer spending activity. This is especially the case for retailers, with many hiring more customer service agents.