Minority-owned businesses outpace rest

Employer Handbook
The U.S. Census Bureau recently reported that minorities and women are increasing their business ownership at a much higher rate than the national average. While the number of U.S. businesses increased by 10 percent between 1997 and 2002, the rate of growth for minority- and women-owned businesses increased at a much higher rate:

Native Hawaiian- and other Pacific Islander-owned businesses increased 67 percent; African-American-owned businesses increased 45 percent; Hispanic-owned businesses increased 31 percent; Asian-owned businesses increased 24 percent; and women-owned businesses increased 20 percent.

The nation