September 27, 2021
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Mind the Gap
A new Gusto data report shows that the gender pay gap between male and female workers narrowed slightly in 2020—but sadly, it’s not a cause for celebration:
In 2020, the US economy saw a narrowing of the pay gap between men and women, but a significant part of this narrowing was in fact because of a deterioration in women’s economic progress: low-wage women disproportionately left the workforce as the COVID-19 pandemic hit the sectors they worked in the hardest and as caregiving responsibilities forced them to take a step back from work, artificially raising measures of women’s earnings in 2020. This unequal impact can account for one fifth of the apparent narrowing of the gender pay gap, and it resulted in women losing $40 billion more in earnings than men over the past year.
Women disproportionately lost low-wage jobs during the pandemic, making it appear as though their earnings overall increased. In reality, women lost out on $40 billion more in earnings. Data has shown us that when women lose out on income, communities lose out. That’s why we’ll continue to closely follow trends in women’s wages and entrepreneurship.
Read the full new data report here.
How to buy a business
If you’ve dreamt of owning your own business, buying one could be a safe and efficient way to hit the ground running. But it comes with a few key challenges:
- Change is hard, especially when you’re dealing with long-established teams and processes.
- It takes time to develop knowledge and build trust with an existing business and team.
- It can be pretty expensive up front, even if you’re saving money down the line.
- Last but not least, finding the right company for sale can take up to 24 months.
If done right though, buying a business can be a streamlined and cost-effective way into your business ownership dreams.
Here’s your step-by-step guide to buying a business.
EOY Benefits Series, Part 3: HRAs and HSAs
We’re coming up on the end of the year, which is when employers and employees turn their attention towards benefits. In the coming weeks, we’ll spotlight helpful benefits guides to answer some common year-end questions.
One common question is: Can you have an HRA and an HSA at the same time? We’ve already talked about HRAs, aka health reimbursement accounts. An HSA is a health savings account, or an account that allows eligible employees to save pre-tax money to pay for medical expenses.
The short answer is yes, individuals can have both accounts at the same time—but the IRS has some very specific rules for an employee to be contributing to an HSA and simultaneously receiving HRA reimbursements. They’ve also created solutions that allow employees to have the best of both worlds. These are: limited-purpose HRAs, post-deductible HRAs, suspended HRAs, and retirement HRAs.
Learn more in our full guide to HRAs and HSAs, and tune back in next week for another benefits spotlight.
Watchlist
SEP 29: The funding landscape w/ IFundWomen
Every business needs funding, and there are lots of different types of capital. In this workshop with IFundWomen, you’ll learn about all the sources of capital that may be available to you, and how to identify which one is right for your current stage of business. RSVP here.
SEP 30: Grow with Google: Design Thinking for Entrepreneurs & The New Normal w/ USBC
The global pandemic has shifted the business world from physical to virtual and has magnified the need for Black-owned businesses to become digital-savvy. Join this webinar to learn how to take full advantage of powerful digital tools. Register here.
OCT 5: Make Confident Business Decisions w/ NAWBO
Join Mariyah Saifuddin, co-founder of Innovative Solution Partners, to learn how to choose KPIs (key performance indicators) that make sense for your business, what you need to track KPIs, and how to use KPIs to make sound business decisions. Register here.
Find the latest relief options in our Small Business Relief Finder.
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