Small firms also tend to fill niches in the labor market that are underserved (often have high rates of unemployment, for example). Small firms employ higher shares of Hispanics than large firms ( percent of Hispanics work for firms with fewer than 500 employees). 9 And compared with large firms, small firms also employ higher shares of individuals with low educational attainment—a high school degree or less ( percent); high school-aged workers ( percent); individuals 65 or older ( percent); disabled workers ( percent); and rural workers ( percent). .
