New York SBDC Research Network

On June 11, 2015, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and United Airlines announced a landmark consent decree resolving ongoing litigation about what it means to reassign an employee as a reasonable accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). To understand the significance of this agreement, we must first understand why reassignment as a reasonable accommodation is so important. When Congress passed the ADA in 1990, it recognized the need for a national legal framework to protect the employment rights of people with disabilities. Employment is a hugely important part of our collective lives. In addition to a paycheck, a job can provide other benefits, such as self-esteem and a sense of belonging, and for 25 years, the ADA has helped employees with disabilities obtain and maintain employment. More from the Disability Blog .

This week, the Office of Advocacy released a new research product, “Three Reasons to Love Your Region.” Designed to encourage regional small business pride, these handouts and web animation highlight unique facts and statistics illustrating the central role small businesses play in the economy. The series draws from the Office of Advocacy’s State Small Business Profiles and federal agency data sources.  To learn more about your region or to explore another region’s small business success, click  here .

In 2014, employed people worked an average of 7.8 hours on the days they worked. More hours were worked, on average, on weekdays than on weekend days—8.1 hours compared with 5.7 hours. On the days they worked, employed men worked 52 minutes more than employed women. This difference partly reflects women's greater likelihood of working part time. However, even among full-time workers (those usually working 35 hours or more per week), men worked longer than women—8.4 hours compared with 7.8 hours. More from the Bureau of Labor Statistics .

Starting a small business is not a one size fits all-process. However, one best practice that all small businesses should consider is liability insurance. It’s no surprise that most of the information out there about liability insurance comes directly from insurance providers, so it is important to do extensive research to ensure that you are relying on objective information to make business decisions. The SBA offers a wealth of information on liability insurance for small businesses that can help. Here are a few points to consider as you work to ensure that your business has complete protection: Liability insurance protects you from a variety of legal claims including bodily and personal injury as well as property damage that can occur during day-to-day business operations. If you do not have employees, you may not be required by law to have insurance, but you should still be prepared. A single incident can unravel all of the hard work that you have done to build your business. Wh

2012  annual or static data include number of firms, number of establishments, employment, annual payroll, and estimated receipts for most U.S. business establishments. The data are tabulated by geographic area, industry, and enterprise size. Industry classification is based on 2012 North American Industry Classification System  (NAICS)  codes. An establishment with 0 employment is an establishment with no paid employees in the mid-March pay period but with paid employees at some time during the year. Receipts data are available only for economic census years (years ending in 2 and 7). View the latest receipts data below. Employment and Payroll Summary Report: 2012  [PDF, 1.1 MB] Data Tables by Enterprise Employment Size        The following links are subsets of SUSB data in spreadsheet format.        For more detailed industry and employment size classes, download additional data in  comma-delimited format.           U.S. and States:             U.S. & states, totals   [xls

The Business Expenses Survey (BES) was created originally to compile statistics on business operating expenses for Retail Trade, Wholesale Trade, and Service Industries. Expense data are key components of the Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) input-output (I-O) accounts, which are a critical element in the calculation of Gross Domestic Product (GDP).  Starting in 2003, the Service Annual Survey (SAS) began collecting selected expense items on their annual form. In 2004, Census and BEA formed a joint team, called the Core Expenses Group (CEG) to evaluate the collection of expense items across the many Census programs. The result of this team effort was a core set of expenses that have been collected on an annual basis since 2005 by the SAS and the Annual Survey of Manufacturers (ASM), and on a quinquennial basis by the Annual Retail Trade Survey (ARTS), Annual Wholesale Trade Survey (AWTS), and the Economic Census for Manufacturing, Construction, and Mining. What data is available

The Startup in a Day initiative aims to make it easier for entrepreneurs to start a business by reducing the amount of time it takes to register and apply for permits and licenses on the local level. Cities and Native American communities across the United States are encouraged to get involved. The SBA is conducting two prize competitions for U.S. cities and Native American communities. Both competitions will award prizes to support the development, implementation, and improvement of online tools that will let entrepreneurs learn about the business startup process in their area, including how to register and apply for all required local licenses and permits, in one day or less. Startup in a Day Competition – Start Small Model: The first competition will award up to 25 prizes of up to $50,000 each for cities. Up to two (2) prizes of $50,000 each are available specifically for Native American communities. Startup in a Day Competition – Dream Big Model: The second competition chal