98.6% of American Manufacturers are Small Businesses, Struggling to Hire

98.6% of American manufacturing companies are small businesses, and 75.3% of those businesses have fewer than 20 employees, according to data gathered by SCORE, mentors to America's small businesses.

In 2018, manufacturing businesses generated 11.6% of the U.S. economic output and employed 8.5% of the U.S. workforce, but 89% of manufacturers report that they cannot fill all job openings.

"Manufacturing businesses drive the U.S. economy," said SCORE CEO Ken Yancey. "They might be factories or bakeries, and they might utilize machine power or hand-make their products, but what they have in common is that the vast majority of manufacturers are small business owners."

What are manufacturing businesses?

Manufacturing businesses create products from raw materials or components, either by machines or by hand. These goods are made in plants, factories, mills and private homes.

Small manufacturing businesses (with fewer than 20 employees) comprise these percentages of total employment for the following products:

• 22.9% of apparel
• 18.4% of furniture and related products
• 16.4% of fabricated metal products
• 15.2% of wood products
• 11.5% of beverage and tobacco products
• 8.6% of machinery
• 6.3% of food
• 5.6% of electrical equipment, appliances and components
• 5.3% of plastics and rubber products
• 5.1% of computers and electronic products
• 2.8% of paper

Top reasons cited for manufacturers having difficulty filling job openings include:

• Shifting skill sets due to advancing technologies
• Misperceptions of manufacturing jobs
• Retirement of baby boomers

Find out more at www.score.org.