Research Summary

Women-Owned Businesses Lead the Way in Providing Employee Benefits

Center for Women’s Business Research  ·  May 17, 1994

Among the report’s key findings:

Women-owned businesses are as likely to provide the same level of basic employee benefits, such as health care and paid vacation time, as all small businesses: fully 84% of women-owned businesses offer one or more benefits;

Women business owners are more likely than all businesses to offer flex-time, tuition reimbursement and job sharing;

Women business owners tend to share their business’ profits with employees at a much earlier stage than other businesses: nearly twice as many woman-owned firms employing fewer than 25 employees (14%) have set up such programs compared t o all small firms with 20 or less employees (8%).

“While we provide the same kinds of fundamental benefits to our employees as other businesses do, women business owners differ, because we offer our employees benefits that go beyond the basics,” said Laura Henderson, Chair of the National Foundation for Women Business Owners and President and CEO of Rockville, Maryland-based Prospect Associates. “By providing benefits such as work scheduling options, education opportunities, and profit sharing, we show that in many ways women really do manage differently.”

“Not only do we provide stable employment opportunities and provide jobs to a large percentage of the nation’s workforce -- employing more people in the United States than the Fortune 500 do worldwide -- women business owners are also ahead of the curve in offering employees innovative, quality work environments,” Ms. Henderson continued.

Forty percent of women-owned businesses offer flex-time, while only 30% of all small firms do, which suggests that women business owners are more likely than all business owners to accommodate the special work needs of their employees. Further, this gap widens as business size increases, with 40% of women-owned firms with 25 or more employees offering flex-time, compared to only 19% of all firms of approximately the same size.

Involvement in the professional development of employees is another area where women-owned businesses differ in the benefits opportunities provided. Twenty-one percent of women-owned businesses offer tuition reimbursement programs, compared to only 8% of all small businesses.

“As a company that continues to develop leading edge programs that enhance the worklife of our employees, we’re very encouraged by the findings of this NFWBO study,” says Dick Falcone, Vice President, Sales, Commercial Accounts, AT&T. “In today’s workplace, employees expect to have the tools, and be allowed the flexibility, to accomplish their work at peak performance. And in the fast-paced environment in which we operate, with telecommuting, flex-time and job sharing, companies have to be even more nurturing than they have been in the past. We’re pleased to see this trend identified in this study.”

“The employee benefits offered by women-owned businesses make it evident that these firms are not only a powerful economic force, but are also an important and influential social force. The numbers and comparisons revealed in this report demonstrate that women business owners are out in front on today’s employment issues,” commented Judy Weiss, Senior Vice President, The MetLife Small Business Center. “At every stage in their businesses, even when the organizations are young or small, women business owners provide their employees with a comprehensive package of benefits which set the standard for the rest of society.”

Upcoming reports in the NFWBO Research Monograph Series, which will be released approximately every other month, will include a look at women business owners in international trade and the global marketplace, an investigation of their use of technology, and an exploration of the greatest challenges and rewards of business ownership. Individual reports are $40.00 each.

The National Foundation for Women Business Owners is the research, training, and education arm of the National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO), the only nationwide professional organization dedicated to women business owners. NFWBO’s mission is to support the growth of women business owners through gathering and sharing knowledge.

NOTE: The report “Employee Benefits Offered by Women-Owned Businesses: A Framework for Compassion” compares the employee benefits offered by women-owned businesses and all businesses, utilizing data from the 1992 biennial membership survey of the National Association of Women Business Owners conducted by NFWBO and a 1992 national survey of small and medium-sized businesses conducted by National Small Business United (NSBU).

The 1992 Membership Survey of Women Business Owners was sponsored by leading corporate supporters AT&T and IBM. The survey garnered 1,071 responses from a questionnaire mailed to 3,855 members of the National Association of Women Business Owners. It was conducted in November, 1992. The sampling error for a survey of N=1,071 is ± 3.2% at the 95% confidence interval. Comparative data are courtesy of a 1992 study among small and medium-sized firms conducted by National Small Business United and Arthur Andersen’s Enterprise Group. See Survey Results of Small and Middle Market Businesses: Attitudes, Issues and Outlook, July, 1992.

Charts

Most Women-Owned Firms Provide One or More Benefits To Their Employees

Summary of Benefits Offered By Women-Owned BusinessesComparison of Benefits Offered By Women-Owned Businesses and All Small Businesses

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