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Small-business hiring increased in September, one of three months this year to register a positive trend in hiring, according to numbers released Thursday by SurePayroll's Small Business Scorecard.
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The Scorecard hiring index, which compiles statistics based on payroll data from more than 17,000 small businesses nationwide, ended September with an 8-point increase over August. It is at the same level as the end of June, meaning small business neither gained nor lost jobs during the third quarter. That's an improvement over both the first and second quarters, which each showed a slight job loss.

Scorecard officials credited the Federal Reserve decision to hold the line on interest rates with having a positive effect on the small-business economy.

Wichita small-business owners agree that the economy is improving.

David Daniels, president of Wichita Burner Inc., said he has hired four new employees this year and is in the process of hiring three more.

"We're seeing a definite uptick in activity," he said.

He credits the increasingly solid business position of Spirit AeroSystems with an overall positive outlook for the smaller businesses in Wichita.

Daniels said his business is also growing because of its connection to the burgeoning biofuels industry.

"As we increase our line of products to help the biofuels industry gain more efficiency in heat generation, our business continues to grow," he said.

Better health for larger businesses is also driving another trend for small businesses -- salary increases -- said Ken Gaebler, a spokesman for the Small Business Scorecard.

Salaries are up 2 percent in the third quarter, he said, and now stand at an annualized rate of $30,942.

The Scorecard's survey of 401 small-business owners showed 37 percent of small-business owners say they have to pay more for a given employee than they did a year ago.

"We think the increased demand for skilled workers by larger companies is driving wage inflation for smaller employers," Gaebler said.

Bill Lee, owner of Scott Rice Office Interiors in Wichita, said better economic times are also enabling small businesses to increase salaries.

"I'd say both the hiring and higher pay are trends in Wichita as well as nationally," he said. "We started giving merit increases again just last month, in fact."

The Scorecard reported that a survey of small businesses also found that the number of independent contractors engaged by small businesses remained static this year, with 3.4 independent contractors for every 100 salaried workers.

Copyright (c) 2006. Witchita Eagle.