It’s Your Business
The average number of employees per firm ranged from:
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- 35 in the forestry, fishing and hunting, and agriculture support services industry
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- 26 in management of companies and enterprises
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- 15 in the administrative and support and waste management and remediation industry
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- 12 for manufacturing firms
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- 11 in mining and accommodation and food services
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- 4 employees per firm for utility, finance and insurance, real estate and rental and leasing, and other services, such as repair and maintenance.
The report also shows that firms with paid employees accounted for 81 percent ($180 billion) of the gross receipts of all Hispanic-owned firms in 2002 – a 13 percent increase between 1997 and 2002. The average receipts for these employer firms were $899,575. The industries accounting for the largest share of receipts for employer firms included wholesale trade ($37.5 billion), retail trade ($35.6 billion), and construction ($22.7 billion).
The report indicates that more Hispanics are going into business as sole proprietors, without hiring any employees. “Between 1997 and 2002, the number of firms with no paid employees increased by nearly 386,000 firms to reach 1.4 million. That’s a 39 percent increase, more than 3 times the national average of 12 percent,” said Ms. Strang.
More good news: businesses run by Hispanic entrepreneurs with no paid employees took in $42.4 billion in revenue in 2002, up by 54 percent over 1997.
The industries accounting for the largest share of these receipts included construction ($8.8 billion), transportation and warehousing ($5.1 billion), and retail trade ($4.9 billion), followed by other services such as repair and maintenance ($4.8 billion). Ms. Strang also reported that in 2002, retail and wholesale trade accounted for 35.9 percent of all Hispanic-owned business revenue, followed by construction and manufacturing. Nearly 3 in every 10 Hispanic-owned firms operated in construction and other services, such as personal services and repair and maintenance.
