Alabama’s small businesses are still being impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, according to the results of a survey released Monday.
Of the state’s small businesses polled, 80 percent said they’ve experienced shortages or shipping delays because of coronavirus, according to the survey by the Alabama office of the National Federation of Independent Business.
Of those polled, 27 percent of the small businesses said employees have taken off work due to COVID-19, and at least half said they would need more financial relief to fully recover.
The results show that 75 percent said they had applied for and received a federal Paycheck Protection Program loan to avoid cutting jobs during the economic slowdown, and 50 percent say would apply for a second PPP loan if allowed by Congress.
In July, Gov. Kay Ivey announced the formation of the Revive Alabama grant program, which would reimburse small businesses for up to a combined $100 million for expenses incurred because of the pandemic. Of those small businesses polled, just 15 percent said they had applied for a Revive Alabama grant.
“This spring and summer were tremendously challenging for Alabama’s small businesses, and it may be months before things get back to normal,” said NFIB state director Rosemary Elebash, in a statement. “We encourage the Alabama Legislature and Congress to take every action they can to help our small businesses get through this economic crisis and avoid cutting jobs and closing their doors for good.”
