Trends in Minority Women-Owned Employer Establishments, pg. 1 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Prepared by the National Women’s Business Council August 2004

 

Trends in Minority Women-Owned 

Employer Establishments: 1997 to 2000 

The NWBC has entered into a ground-breaking agreement with the Census Bureau to produce annual tabulations on trends in the number and 

employment of women-owned employer establishments by state and industry. These are the only data available annually between Census years, and 

allow us to provide a detailed, more up-to-date picture of trends in women’s entrepreneurship. In January 2004, the NWBC published an issue in 

brief which examined changes between 1997 and 2000 among all women-owned employer firms, looking at two key measures: survival and changes in 

employment. These measures allow us to examine the stability and growth of existing businesses and their locations. 

The current issue in brief examines the same measures among minority women-owned employer firms, consolidating and summarizing 

information from a series of four individual briefs that are being released simultaneously: African American, Asian American, Latina, and Native 

American Women-Owned Employer Establishments. These issues in brief look at establishments – or locations – in total, rather than focusing on 

individual businesses at the enterprise level.

Background1

In 1997, minority women owned 923,403 non-farm 

businesses, generating $84.7 billion in business revenues 

and accounting for 17% of all women-owned firms.2

Fourteen percent (13.5%) of these business enterprises3

had at least one paid employee other than the owner, 

employing in total nearly 780,000 people. Fully 80% of the 

total receipts from minority women-owned firms were 

generated by these employer firms. In comparison, 15.6% 

of all women-owned firms had at least one paid employee 

other than the owner, with these firms accounting for 88% 

of total receipts among women-owned firms. 

This Issue in Brief describes trends among just those 

enterprises with at least one paid employee at any point 

1 The Census Bureau’s Economic Census is the major source of 

detailed information about the structure and functioning of the 

Nation’s economy. Title 13 of the United States Code directs the 

Census Bureau to take the economic census every 5 years, 

covering years ending in 2 and 7. The most recently available 

statistics come from the 1997 Economic Census, published in 

2001. 

2 Women-owned firms include only privately-held firms with 

51% or more ownership by a woman or women. Minority 

women-owned firms include only privately-held firms with 51% 

or more ownership by a woman or women AND 51% or more 

ownership by a minority or minorities. 

3 An enterprise is a business organization consisting of one or 

more domestic establishments (locations) that were specified 

under common ownership or control. 

during 1997 and focuses on business establishments – or 

locations.4 Comparisons are made to all establishments, 

which also include only those with at least one paid 

employee during 1997. 

Business Establishment Survival 

More than three-quarters (77%) of Asian American 

women-owned employer business locations in existence in 

1997 were still in operation three years later, compared 

with 75% of Native American, 73% of Latina, and 68% of 

African American women-owned employer business 

locations. Among all women-owned employer 

establishments, 75% remained in business over the period. 

There were enormous variations on a state-by-state basis, 

with some states showing strong survival across all 

minority groups, and some states showing weak survival 

across all minority groups. Most states, however, showed 

variations among these racial/ethnic groups. Eighteen 

states had fewer than 35 women-owned employer firms in 

one or more of the four minority groups, with North 

4 The following example illustrates the difference between 

establishments and enterprises: if a business consolidated 

multiple locations and employees into a single location, we 

would see a decrease in the number of establishments without a 

corresponding decrease in either enterprises or employment. 

This is important to consider, as an establishment “death” does 

not necessarily equate to a business enterprise closure. 

Issue in Brief
Trends in Minority Women-Owned Employer Establishments, pg. 2 

 

 

Dakota having fewer than 35 women-owned employer 

firms in all four minority groups. 5

When the fifty states and 

the District of Columbia 

were ranked on survival 

within each minority group, 

Michigan appeared in the 

top 10 states among 

African American, Asian 

American, and Latina 

women-owned employer 

firms. Nine states 

(Arizona, Connecticut, 

Hawaii, Kentucky, 

Maryland, Montana, 

Nebraska, New Jersey, 

and Washington) each 

appeared in the top 10 

states for two of the four 

minority groups based on 

survival. Kentucky and 

New Jersey both showed 

above-average survival among all four minority groups. 

California, while only appearing in the top 10 states 

among Native American women-owned employer firms, 

also showed average or above-average survival among all 

four minority groups. 

Colorado and Iowa both appeared in the bottom 10 

states based on survival among African American, Latina, 

and Native American women-owned employer firms. Six 

states (Alaska, Massachusetts, Nevada, North 

Carolina, Oregon, and South Carolina) each appeared 

in the bottom 10 states for two of the four minority groups 

based on survival. 

On an industry level, Services showed above-average 

survival for all four minority groups, compared to average 

survival among non-minority women-owned employer 

firms. Agriculture/Forestry/Fishing and 

Transportation/ Communications/Utilities each 

showed above-average survival for three of the four 

minority groups. 

Trends in Employment 

In addition to examining survival, business health may also 

be measured by employment growth. Native American 

5 When looking at state-level information throughout this report, 

data are not reported if fewer than 35 women-owned employer 

firms of a particular race were in existence in a given state in 

1997. 

women-owned employer establishments saw a robust 36% 

increase in employment between 1997 and 2000, due in 

large part to enormous growth in Texas and California 

(114% and 93% growth in 

employment, respectively).6

In comparison, Asian 

American women-owned 

employer establishments 

saw a 1.7% decline in 

employment over the 

period, Latina-owned 

employer firms saw a 4.6% 

decline, and African 

American women-owned 

employer firms saw a 

21.8% decline in 

employment. Among all 

women-owned employer 

firms, the decline in 

employment was 4.2% over 

the period. Therefore, the 

overall decline in 

employment from 1997 to 

2000 was much larger among African American womenowned employer firms than among other women-owned 

employer firms – minority and non-minority alike – and 

the growth in employment was much stronger among 

Native American women-owned employer firms. 

Survival Among Women-Owned Employer 

Establishments: 1997 - 2000

77

75 75

73

68

Asian American

Native American

All Women-Owned

Latina

African American

50

55

60

65

70

75

80

85

Among those women-owned employer establishments that 

were still in business in 2000 (that is, those that 

“survived”), those that expanded employment greatly 

outnumbered those that shed or maintained jobs in all four 

minority groups. Forty-five percent (44.6%) of surviving 

Asian American, 42.3% of surviving African American, 

42.4% of surviving Latina, and 38.3% of surviving Native 

American women-owned employer firms increased 

employment from 1997 to 2000. The net result is that, 

among the surviving women-owned employer 

establishments, there was 52.5% increase in employment 

among Native American women-owned employer 

establishments, a 17% increase among Latina-owned 

employer establishments, a 16.7% increase among Asian 

American women-owned employer establishments, and a 

 

6 Establishments that were formed after 1997 are not included in 

these tabulations. Thus, references to changes in employment 

refer to changes from 1997 to 2000 among only those 

establishments in existence in 1997 and do not take into account 

new firm creation since that time. According to a new Census 

Bureau working paper, start-ups in the first two years of 

operation accounted for virtually all of the net new jobs in the 

economy. 
Trends in Minority Women-Owned Employer Establishments, pg. 3 

 

13.5% increase in employment among African American 

women-owned employer establishments. Among all 

surviving women-owned employer establishments, there 

was a 13.7% increase in employment. Thus, in three of the 

four minority groups, employment growth among 

surviving women-owned employer firms was greater than 

among surviving non-minority employer firms. 

When the fifty states and 

the District of Columbia 

were ranked on 

employment growth within 

each minority group, Iowa, 

Minnesota, Virginia, and 

Wisconsin all appeared in 

the top 10 states among 

three of the four minority 

groups. Six states 

(California, Delaware, 

Maryland, Nebraska, 

New Hampshire, and 

Washington) each 

appeared in the top 10 

states for two of the four 

minority groups based on 

employment growth. As 

with rankings based on 

survival, California showed above-average employment 

growth among all four minority groups. 

Oregon appeared in the bottom 10 states among African 

American, Asian American, and Native American womenowned employer firms. Seven states (Alaska, Florida, 

Kansas, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, and 

Texas) each appeared in the bottom 10 states for two of 

the four minority groups based on employment growth. 

On an industry level, Agriculture/Forestry/Fishing, 

Construction, and Retail Trade all showed aboveaverage employment growth for all three of the four 

minority groups. 

 

Conclusions and Recommendations 

More than two-thirds of minority women-owned employer 

establishments that were operating in 1997 were still in 

existence three years later. Asian American women-owned 

employer establishments showed the strongest survival 

rates (77%), while African American women-owned 

employer establishments showed the lowest survival rates 

(68%) among the four minority groups studied. Among all 

women-owned employer establishments, 75% were still in 

existence after three years. 

Native American women-owned employer establishments 

saw the strongest growth in employment (36%) between 

1997 and 2000, while African American women-owned 

employer firms saw a 21.8% decline in employment over 

the period. Nonetheless, sixteen states saw growth in 

employment among African American women-owned 

establishments, while only five states experienced growth 

in employment among all 

women-owned 

establishments. Among all 

women-owned employer 

firms, the decline in 

employment was 4.2% over 

the period. 

Among those womenowned employer 

establishments that 

survived from 1997 to 

2000, those that expanded 

employment greatly 

outnumbered those that 

shed or maintained jobs in 

all four minority groups. 

Forty-five percent (44.6%) 

of surviving Asian 

American, 42.3% of 

surviving African American, 42.4% of surviving Latina, 

and 38.3% of surviving Native American women-owned 

employer firms increased employment from 1997 to 2000. 

Employment Among Minority 

Women-Owned Establishments: 

1997 - 2000

52.5

16.7 13.7 17.0 13.5

36.0

-1.7 -4.2 -4.6

-21.8

Native American

Asian American

All Women-Owned

Latina

African American

-30.0

-20.0

-10.0

0.0

10.0

20.0

30.0

40.0

50.0

60.0

All 1997 Establishments Surviving Establishments

There are few across-the-board “best” or “worst” states 

when it comes to the stability and growth of minority 

women-owned employer firms. Maryland, Nebraska, and 

Washington were the most likely to appear among the top 

10 states across the four minority groups based on both 

survival and employment growth between 1997 and 2000. 

California showed average or above-average performance 

among all four minority groups on both survival and 

employment growth, while Kentucky and New Jersey both 

showed above-average survival rates among all four 

minority groups. 

Alaska, Massachusetts, and Oregon were the most likely to 

appear among the bottom 10 states across the minority 

groups. Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, and Virginia all showed 

below-average survival rates across all four minority 

groups. Arizona had below-average employment growth 

across all four minority groups. 

Among the other states, there was wide variation among 

the four minority groups and across the two measures, 

with no clear patterns emerging. The same holds true 
Trends in Minority Women-Owned Employer Establishments, pg. 4 

 

across industries. Furthermore, performance of nonminorities was not a predictor of minority survival or 

employment growth. 

We continue to recommend that in-between Census years 

there would be great benefit in examining new firm 

creation, even if only among businesses with employees. 

We recommend that this data be collected and made 

available for analysis, in order to provide an even richer 

understanding of establishment dynamics and sources of 

employment gains and losses. 

Additional details are available in the individual minority 

briefs. 

Table 1: Survival Rates for Women-Owned Employer Establishments By State: 1997-2000

African 

American 

Asian 

American Latina 

Native 

American White 

Total 

Women 

U.S. 68 77 73 75 75 75

Alabama 79 58 76 73 72 72

Alaska 46 70 49 82 71 71 

Arizona 83 66 75 86 67 68 

Arkansas 68 74 * 55 68 68 

California 73 80 73 82 77 77 

Colorado 28 75 62 48 73 73 

Connecticut 60 85 98 71 79 79 

Delaware 67 59 * * 78 75 

District of Columbia 51 76 86 * 69 69 

Florida 69 71 73 39 71 71 

Georgia 65 72 63 83 73 72 

Hawaii * 81 89 * 67 77 

Idaho * * 70 66 71 71 

Illinois 62 73 62 74 79 78 

Indiana 73 86 79 59 73 73 

Iowa 22 74 38 52 75 74 

Kansas 53 80 85 89 76 76 

Kentucky 75 82 91 78 73 74 

Louisiana 62 78 69 80 77 76 

Maine * 80 * 84 76 76 

Maryland 81 75 92 75 78 78 

Massachusetts 44 81 86 19 77 77 

Michigan 78 82 87 64 76 76 

Minnesota 71 67 68 93 77 77 

Mississippi 48 73 87 * 75 73 

Missouri 71 73 68 62 73 73 

Montana * * 91 85 71 72 

Nebraska 81 78 95 * 77 77 

Nevada 59 56 82 51 70 69 

New Hampshire * 92 * * 79 80 

New Jersey 76 83 79 82 77 78 

New Mexico * 97 67 79 70 70 

New York 87 77 78 67 81 81 

North Carolina 76 60 33 81 76 76 

North Dakota * * * * 73 73 

Ohio 65 77 77 81 75 75 

Oklahoma 89 75 73 81 77 78 
Trends in Minority Women-Owned Employer Establishments, pg. 5 

 

Table 1: Survival Rates for Women-Owned Employer Establishments By State: 1997-2000

African 

American 

Asian 

American Latina 

Native 

American White 

Total 

Women 

Oregon 45 59 75 60 72 71 

Pennsylvania 77 69 79 65 77 77 

Rhode Island * 93 52 * 77 77 

South Carolina 72 67 * 57 74 74 

South Dakota * * * 78 76 76 

Tennessee 40 78 74 95 69 68 

Texas 53 79 72 89 75 75 

Utah * 62 73 * 72 72 

Vermont * 74 27 * 70 69 

Virginia 56 75 72 53 74 73 

Washington 77 77 89 57 72 73 

West Virginia * 79 * * 73 73 

Wisconsin 78 71 67 72 75 75 

Wyoming * * 79 * 73 73 

* Fewer than 35 women-owned employer firms of indicated minority in these states 

Table 2: Survival Rates for Women-Owned Employer Establishments By Industry: 1997-2000 

African 

American 

Asian 

American Latina 

Native 

American White 

Total 

Women

Total, All Industries 68 77 73 75 75 75

Agriculture/Forestry/Fishing 72 91 69 85 79 79

Construction 63 76 79 66 74 74

Finance/Insurance/Real Estate 76 75 66 80 78 78

Manufacturing 57 67 75 84 79 78

Mining * * * 83 67 67

Retail Trade 65 77 79 69 74 75

Services 69 79 75 78 75 75

Transportation/Communications/

Utilities 68 84 43 91 72 71

Wholesale Trade 74 72 80 56 79 79

* Fewer than 35 women-owned employer firms of indicated minority in this industry
Trends in Minority Women-Owned Employer Establishments, pg. 6 

 

Table 3: Overall Employment Growth for Women-Owned Employer Establishments By State: 1997-2000

African 

American 

Asian 

American Latina 

Native 

American White 

Total 

Women 

U.S. -21.8 -1.7 -4.6 36.0 -4.2 -4.2

Alabama 15.5 10.9 0.0 -12.9 -6.2 -5.3

Alaska -37.2 -19.8 0.0 -7.1 -11.7 -11.8

Arizona -37.2 -9.2 -9.5 3.4 -2.0 -2.8

Arkansas -12.4 -3.7 * 0.0 -8.4 -8.4

California 17.9 -0.4 -2.3 93.1 -12.1 -6.9

Colorado -17.3 -25.3 2.2 -22.3 -5.5 -6.0

Connecticut -0.6 0.6 23.7 -35.7 -4.9 -4.6

Delaware 12.1 130.0 * * -3.5 -0.4

District of Columbia 0.7 -31.3 -9.3 * -14.8 -13.9

Florida -27.2 -2.7 -1.0 -33.4 -8.0 -8.0

Georgia -13.6 -16.6 0.7 -19.4 -6.2 -6.8

Hawaii * -11.3 55.3 * -16.8 -12.7

Idaho * * -11.5 -24.6 -12.9 -13.0

Illinois -60.3 -13.9 8.1 23.9 -0.3 -2.2

Indiana -28.4 -13.9 10.9 34.9 -5.4 -5.8

Iowa 9.8 86.5 37.5 -42.0 -2.5 -1.9

Kansas -40.9 -19.7 -4.4 -9.9 -2.4 -3.4

Kentucky 3.0 -22.0 47.9 -7.8 -8.2 -7.8

Louisiana -25.5 14.8 17.1 0.0 -17.5 -16.8

Maine * 11.2 * -24.3 14.6 14.3

Maryland 0.5 20.6 -13.4 4.4 -6.8 -4.1

Massachusetts -29.2 58.5 -14.8 0.0 -3.8 -2.4

Michigan 30.4 -26.1 10.0 -36.9 -12.1 -11.3

Minnesota 74.7 20.8 4.0 17.9 -6.0 -5.2

Mississippi -22.7 -13.4 -12.9 * -4.5 -5.1

Missouri -15.5 -20.2 -33.7 -5.1 -3.6 -4.4

Montana * * 13.4 -23.3 0.1 -0.4

Nebraska 46.1 15.5 33.4 * -13.0 -10.8

Nevada -34.3 -0.3 27.2 -22.6 -6.3 -4.9

New Hampshire * 21.9 * * -4.5 -1.1

New Jersey 5.5 29.6 0.8 -69.1 22.9 22.3

New Mexico * 197.9 -28.6 -12.4 -16.2 -13.4

New York -8.2 -11.6 -2.0 54.1 9.4 8.1

North Carolina 0.7 -28.9 10.2 -9.9 -10.0 -9.7

North Dakota * * * * -15.9 -16.3

Ohio -11.2 0.7 107.2 -51.1 -6.1 -5.8

Oklahoma 24.5 -16.4 -17.6 -5.9 -6.1 -6.0

Oregon -33.7 -41.1 15.6 -31.4 -9.0 -10.1

Pennsylvania 9.3 19.1 7.7 -34.8 3.9 4.2

Rhode Island * -15.2 13.7 * 3.4 2.9

South Carolina -22.0 16.2 * -25.8 -9.2 -9.5

South Dakota * * * -43.2 -10.6 -10.7

Tennessee -12.0 0.4 -31.8 -28.5 -13.9 -13.9

Texas -73.3 -4.5 -21.5 113.8 -0.3 -6.2

Utah * -26.4 7.9 * -3.7 -3.8
Trends in Minority Women-Owned Employer Establishments, pg. 7 

 

Table 3: Overall Employment Growth for Women-Owned Employer Establishments By State: 1997-2000

African 

American 

Asian 

American Latina 

Native 

American White 

Total 

Women 

Vermont * 6.2 0.0 * -13.7 -12.8

Virginia 11.0 -13.1 27.5 37.7 -0.8 -0.1

Washington -21.5 -4.4 20.3 19.0 -6.6 -5.5

West Virginia * -11.6 * * -10.5 -10.4

Wisconsin 34.9 22.1 -13.1 4.8 -1.7 -0.9

Wyoming * * 5.5 * -7.0 -8.1

* Fewer than 35 women-owned employer firms of indicated minority in these states 

Table 4: Overall Employment Growth for Women-Owned Employer Establishments By Industry: 1997-2000 

African 

American 

Asian 

American Latina 

Native 

American White 

Total 

Women 

Total, All Industries -21.8 -1.7 -4.6 36.0 -4.2 -4.2

Agriculture/Forestry/Fishing -3.8 0.0 20.7 0.0 7.0 7.4

Construction -4.1 14.6 5.4 -21.9 7.0 6.4

Finance/Insurance/Real Estate -21.1 -22.4 -5.8 24.2 -5.0 -5.5

Manufacturing -3.0 -18.7 -24.2 17.2 -6.7 -7.6

Mining * * * * -26.1 -26.0

Retail Trade -14.6 -4.5 1.1 29.6 -12.2 -11.1

Services -21.8 6.3 -4.8 61.7 -1.3 -1.2

Transportation/Communications/

Utilities -63.5 16.4 -10.5 -13.6 -6.1 -7.8

Wholesale Trade -18.6 -5.6 -1.1 -18.9 -2.7 -2.9

* Fewer than 35 women-owned employer firms of indicated minority in this industry
Trends in Minority Women-Owned Employer Establishments, pg. 8 

 

 

Methodology 

The data used in this analysis was provided by the Census 

Bureau, utilizing data based on the 1997 SWOBE7 survey. 

Establishments8 owned by the enterprises reported in the 

1997 SWOBE file were extracted and matched to the 1997 

data on the Business Information Tracking Series (BITS), a 

database containing longitudinal data (annual data from 

1989 through 2000) on virtually all non-farm U.S. business 

establishments with paid employees. Only those womenowned establishments with matching entries in the BITS 

are included in these tabulations. Using the BITS file, the 

Census Bureau was able to create longitudinal tabulations, 

which are tabulations that provide a study of business 

entities across a span of years. 

The tabulations make no attempt to track changes in 

ownership for those businesses that were identified as 

women-owned in 1997. Thus, the tabulations may include 

some establishments that were women-owned in 1997 but 

have changed ownership or undergone reorganization 

since 1997. Likewise, the tabulations do not include any 

women-owned establishment births or existing 

establishments which became women-owned after 1997. 

While the tabulations are at the establishment level, 

weights that were developed for the 1997 SWOBE survey 

were used. These weights were assigned at the enterprise 

level for the SWOBE; for this project, the enterprise 

weight was assigned to each of the establishments 

belonging to the enterprise. 

The 1997 SWOBE estimates were derived from a sample 

survey that was subject to sampling error. The sample size 

(which includes both SWOBE and SMOBE – The Survey 

of Minority-Owned Business Enterprises) was 2,532,911. 

7 The Survey of Women-Owned Business Enterprises (SWOBE) 

provides basic economic data on businesses owned by women. 

8 An establishment is a single, physical location where business is 

conducted or where services or industrial operations are 

performed. 

This particular sample was one of a large number of all 

possible samples of the same size that could have been 

selected using the same sample design. Estimates derived 

from different samples would differ from each other. The 

relative standard error is a measure of the variability among 

the estimates from all possible samples. 

All surveys and censuses are subject to non-sampling 

errors. Non-sampling errors are attributable to many 

sources, including coverage problems, imputation for 

missing data, and errors in data collection. Explicit 

measures of the effects of these non-sampling errors are 

not available for the 1997 SWOBE and therefore are 

unavailable for these tabulations. 

We are extremely grateful to Ruth Runyan, Valerie Strang 

and Trey Cole at the Census Bureau for their assistance on 

this project. 

The National Women’s Business Council is a bi-partisan 

Federal government body created to serve as an 

independent source of advice and policy recommendations 

to the President, Congress, and the U.S. Small Business 

Administration on economic issues of importance to 

women business owners. Members of the Council are 

prominent women business owners and leaders of 

women’s business organizations. For more information 

about the Council, its mission and activities, contact: 

National Women’s Business Council, 409 3rd Street, SW, 

Suite 210, Washington, DC 20024; phone: 202-205-3850; 

fax: 202-205-6825; e-mail: nwbc@sba.gov, web site: 

http://www.nwbc.gov.