The home heating oil industry has a long and proud history, and Fuel Oil News has been there supporting it since 1935. It is an industry that has faced many challenges during that time. In its 77th year, Fuel Oil News is doing more than just holding
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26 JUNE 2016 | FUEL OIL NEWS | www.fueloilnews.com BUSINESS OPERATIONS NEWS SMALL BUSINESS OWNER CHALLENGES When business owners were asked to identify the most important challenge facing their business, 16% cited attracting customers and finding new business as the top concern. Other top concerns included the economy (10%), government regulations (10%) and hiring and retaining quality staff (9%). These challenges have been consistently reported as top concerns of small business owners since early 2013, although the order of concerns shifts from quarter to quarter. SMALL BUSINESS INDEX KEY DRIVERS Wells Fargo and Gallup survey small business owners across the nation each quarter to gauge their perceptions of their present situation (past 12 months) and future expectations (next 12 months) in six key areas: financial situation, cash flow, revenues, capital spending allocation, hiring, and credit availability. ABOUT THE WELLS FARGO/ GALLUP SMALL BUSINESS INDEX: Since August 2003, the Wells Fargo/Gallup Small Business Index has surveyed small business owners on current and future perceptions of their business financial situation. The Index consists of two dimen- sions: 1) Owners' ratings of the current situation of their businesses and, 2) Owners' ratings of how they expect their businesses to perform over the next 12 months. Results are based on telephone interviews with 600 small business owners, with annual revenues up to $20 mil- lion, in all 50 United States conducted April 4-8, 2016. The overall Small Business Index is computed using a formula that scores and sums the answers to 12 questions--six about the present situation and six about the future. An Index score of zero indicates that small business owners, as a group, are neutral—neither optimistic nor pes- simistic—about their companies' situations. The overall Index can range from -400 (the most negative score possible) to +400 (the most positive score possible), but in practice spans a much more limited range. The margin of sampling error is +/- four percentage points. SMALL BUSINESS OWNERS SHOULD TAKE STEPS TO PREVENT EMPLOYMENT CLAIMS A big concern of small business owners in today's changing work- place is the number of employment-related discrimination claims and lawsuits that employees file against their employers. Many of these complaints involve charges of retaliation, with employees claiming they were punished for alleging discrimina- tion, or for participating in a discrimination proceeding against their employer. In its latest report for 2015, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission said it received 39,757 retaliation claims and recovered $178.3 million in monetary benefits from employ- ers. Many smaller businesses paid penalties and settlements. Hartford Steam Boiler's insurance data shows employment claim settlements range between $27,000 and $54,000. The amount paid for a legal defense averages $10,000, a significant amount for a small business owner who typically takes home approximately $60,000 in annual salary. It's important for small business owners to take steps to help prevent an employment claim: Train managers and employees to understand and follow employment laws; Follow changes and updates in laws and employment regulations; Cover the business with employment practices liability insurance. WELLS FARGO/GALLUP SMALL BUSINESS INDEX SCORES: Q2 2015– Q2 2016 Q2 2016 (surveyed April 2016) 64 24 40 Q1 2016 (surveyed January 2016) 67 26 41 Q4 2015 (surveyed November 2015) 54 21 33 Q3 2015 (surveyed July 2015) 59 23 36 Q2 2015 (surveyed April 2015) 64 24 40 OVERALL INDEX SCORE PRESENT SITUATION FUTURE EXPECTATIONS