The COVID-19 pandemic has had an immense impact on small businesses confidence shows the Canadian Federation of Independent Businesses, as business activity slows as a result of people staying indoors and ceasing gatherings to prevent the spread of the Covid19 virus. National small business confidence dropped 10 points earlier this month and dropped yet another 19 index points to just 30.8, a number not seen in the last 32 years, even during the 2008 and 1990 recessions.
38 percent of business owners report that their business is doing poorly and 50 percent have plans to lay off workers in the next three months, while just 5 percent plan to add full-time staff. All industries saw a drop in small business optimism and confidence, with the information and recreation sector showing the lease optimism and the financial sector showing the biggest drop in confidence.
Personal services, hospitality, and retail report the highest confidence levels, though still substantially below the normal level shown prior to the pandemic. Many businesses have been forced to take extreme measures to protect workers, as a result of the threat to employee’s health, such as working from home, layoffs, or ceasing business activity altogether.
“Although these measures are necessary, they have a direct immediate impact on small businesses and their employees,” lamented Mallett. “We are urging governments to provide more relief for small businesses to make sure that we can restore optimism after the crisis is over.”
