Sole Proprietors are Ignored in Most Employment Counts

Self-employed business owners are often ignored when it comes to counting employment numbers.

I’ve been saying that for a long time.  Now there is a study that sets out to prove it . 

The study, by the Enterprise Center at Salem State College, found that when sole proprietors were counted, they made up 17% of all jobs in the state of Massachusetts.  Yet, most counts did not include them, leading  researchers to conclude that sole proprietors essentially fall through the cracks today, get little or no attention, and are a neglected segment of the business community.

The report goes on to suggest that this segment of the business community needs training and support in various ways.

I would hazard a guess that the indirect impact of sole proprietors is also significant — and equally ignored.  One sole proprietor may hire a dozen other self-employed individuals as subcontractors, suppliers, professional services providers.  It doesn’t always have to be about hiring an employee — and today frequently it is not.  Work arrangements are more fluid and flexible today than traditional employer-employee relationships.

Download the Sole Proprietor report here — it is a short Microsoft Word document.