Americans Rush to Be Their Own Bosses as Covid Hits Job Market
- Nonemployer filings with IRS exceed Great Recession pace
- While a stopgap for many, others reassess corporate lifestyle
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Whether out of necessity or a fondness for working in one’s pajama bottoms, Americans are filing paperwork to become their own bosses at a clip one economist calls “off the charts.”
The number of people applying for Employer Identification Numbers, which new businesses file with the IRS, has doubled in recent weeks over year-ago levels and has outpaced the rate seen during the Great Recession. Most are so-called nonemployers such as sole proprietors, although economists have spotted a surprisingly strong increase in applications for businesses likely to hire staff.