According to an NFIB Survey released 9.27.2021: Fifty percent of small businesses are significantly impacted by supply chain disruptions and another 27% by significant staffing shortages.


“Supply chain disruptions and staffing shortages have become substantial issues for small businesses across the country. Small employers are making business operation and hiring adjustments in order to compensate for both issues.”

Holly Wade, executive director of NFIB’s Research Center 


Key findings from the survey conducted in early September 2021

  • 50% of owners reported that supply chain disruptions have significantly impacted their business, and more than half (55%) of those affected report that the supply chain disruptions are worsening.
  • 86% of owners anticipate supply chain disruptions will continue well into 2022.
  • 45% of owners are experiencing a moderate-to-severe staffing shortage. Of these owners, over half (52%) are experiencing a moderate-to-significant sales loss as a result of unfilled positions.
  • 49% of owners reported that they received fewer job applications now than they did a month ago, compared to 15% who received more than they did a month ago.
  • 77% of small employers reported that they increased wages. Smaller numbers offered better benefits such as paid time off (17%), hiring bonuses (16%), referral bonuses (18%), or enhanced health insurance benefits (21%). 
  • Almost all (88%) of owners are working longer hours to compensate for the labor shortage, with 64% offering overtime and 41% expanding hours offered to part-timers. 
  • A third (33%) of small businesses report that their sales numbers are 75% or less of that before the pandemic. Forty-one percent have returned or nearly returned to normal sales numbers, and a quarter (26%) are exceeding pre-COVID sales. 
  • About a fifth of all owners (21%) report that economic conditions have returned to normal in their area. Most owners expect that conditions will not improve until 2022 or beyond. 
  • Of the 76% of owners who received PPP loans in 2020, almost all (94%) have applied for loan forgiveness and 41% applied for a second-draw PPP loan in 2021. 
  • 8% of owners claimed the Employee Retention Tax Credit (ERTC) on wages in 2021 and 20% applied for Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL). 
  • 9% of small business owners say that the recent spike in COVID-19 cases had a large impact on their business, with another 36% saying that it had a moderate impact. 

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