Inflation and problems finding employees are still dogging small businesses, and it could threaten the backbone of the American economy.
"They employ about 60 percent of all workers," UNO professor Mark Rosa said of the nation's small businesses.
Rosa says the labor crunch is still there, and inflation is still a big issue for small business owners.
The National Federation of Independent Businesses Small Business Optimism index has fallen to its lowest level in four months as owners grapple with these problems.
"If you lose one person and you've got four people in the shop, you've lost 25 percent of your work force," said Rosa.
He said that can cripple a small businesses productivity.
"Many of these employers have just gone out of business, crushed under the weight of inflation, the inflation of wages," he said.
Twenty-three percent of business owners in the NFIB survey said finding quality workers was their biggest issue. Another 23 percent said their biggest worry is inflation.
