ANTenna Blog -- Business & E-Business

Last week we reported on surveys showing small and midsize companies were more upbeat than larger competitors. But today's installment indicates widespread belt-tightening among small firms -- including "staycations."

The pollsters can't seem to make up their minds. According to a proprietary survey by online payroll service PayCycle, "almost half (47%) of small business owners indicated they are taking action to reduce payroll by laying off staff, not giving raises or offering days off instead of pay increases."

That contradicts recent info from payroll giant ADP, which we covered in bMighty and Small Biz Resource, indicating that small businesses added 7,000 jobs in June even as larger companies shed positions.

The PayCycle survey, added an interesting twist, though. Apparently, it's all about NOT spending money. The survey also indicated that the economy is leading almost half of all small business owners to cut back on their own vacations this year. The survey found that 43% are cancelling plans or staying closer to home. I guess the word staycation is here to stay.