According to a report released Wednesday by the Bureau of Labor Statistics in the U.S., 6.8 million Americans lost their job in the last quarter of 2009, running from September to December 2009.
Despite 6.6 million new jobs created during the same period, the big job losses overshadowed the jobs created said the BLS. The report also unveiled that businesses with less than 50 employees as well as those in the construction sector accounted for the majority of the job losses.
61.8 per cent of job losses were from small firms said the report.
“Firms of all sizes experienced continued net job losses in the fourth quarter of 2009. Firms with 1 to 49 employees accounted for 61.8 per cent of all net losses,” the BLS said.
New businesses created 1.3 million jobs in the fourth quarter, a slight increase from the 1.2 million jobs in the previous qurater. Approximately 180,000 new businesses were formed during the quarter.
On the other hand, folding businesses slashed 1.3 million jobs in the last quarter, while 1.4 million jobs were eliminated in the previous quarter.
Many small businesses are finding it difficult to survive with the lack of access to credit. The situation has moved U.S. President Barack Obama to urge the Senate to take up a stalled small business bill.
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