Main Street job growth stagnant, as optimism is unchanged
Job creation among smaller employers has remained flat, according to a new survey, despite the government's employment report last week that found an overall surge in new jobs in October.
Small business owners with plans to hire more workers and create jobs was a net 11 percent for October, down 1 point from September, according to data released Tuesday from the National Federation of Independent Business. "This time (small business) owners reported no net growth in employment, which is a significant drop from reports in the previous four months," federation chief economist Bill Dunkelberg said in a statement.
The overall recovery since the Great Recession hasn't yielded a hiring surge among small businesses, which have historically accounted for half of private-sector employment.
The ADP national employment report showed private sector employment rose by 182,000 jobs in October.
The NFIB job details were part of its monthly small businesses optimism index, which was unchanged for October at 96.1. The October survey gave no indication of a resurgence in growth in the small business sector, since the index remained below the 42-year average of 98.
Beyond stagnant jobs growth, the report also found that small businesses feel pessimistic into the next six months.
Small employers cited factors including higher costs for benefits, health care and wages. "Small businesses don't see a lot of demand coming," Dunkelberg said in an email to CNBC.