CARSON CITY — Small business employment reached an all-time high for the three-month period encompassing the first quarter during 2016. It exceeded the previous high from a year ago of 577,000. As of the first three months of the year, employment in Nevada’s firms with less than 100 employees totaled 591,000, said Bill Anderson, chief economist for Nevada’s Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation.
Employment in small businesses fell by 6,300 relative to the fourth quarter of 2015 due to the usual slowdown that occurs following holiday hiring in the final months of the year.
Prior to the recession, small business employment peaked at just over 585,000 in the fourth quarter of 2007. As the downturn unfolded, jobs fell to 510,000.
“All told, the 13,600 year-over-year jobs gain recorded in this year’s first quarter translates into the 21st consecutive quarter of annualized growth,” Anderson said. “At its pre-recession peak, small businesses accounted for 52 percent of total private sector employment. The most recent information shows that employment in these establishments represents 54 percent of the total.
