by Luke Greiner
February 2016
Minnesota is home to almost 389,000 nonemployer business establishments generating more than $17 billion in gross sales. A nonemployer business is one that has no paid employees, has annual business receipts of $1,000 or more ($1 or more in the Construction industries), and is subject to federal income taxes. Most nonemployers are self-employed individuals operating very small unincorporated businesses, which may or may not be the owner’s principal source of income. Many small employers begin as a “nonemployer” and transform into an employer as their business expands beyond the ability of a single owner/operator.
Statewide, the largest numbers of nonemployer businesses are found in the Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services industry with roughly 15% of all establishments, generating more than $2 billion worth of sales. The second most common industry among nonemployers is the Other Services industry with almost 51,000 workers and average annual gross sales per business of $26,178 per year. The Other Services industry includes business such as auto repair shops, hair salons, drycleaning services, and pet boarding establishments.
Click on your county using the interactive tool below to see how nonemployer trends have changed from 1998 to 2013. The additional dropdown menu allows you to select specific industries.
