The establishment death rate exceeded the birth
rate only during the recession in 2001.
··Before the recession in 2008, the establishment
death rate matched the birth rate in the second
and fourth quarters of 2007.
Births are new businesses that
report employment for the first
time or that report positive
employment after four consecutive
quarters of zero employment.
Deaths are businesses that disappear
by reporting no employment for
four consecutive quarters.
Data for the establishment death
rate lags by three quarters.
12
FIGURE
Quarterly number of births and deaths as a percent
of total establishments
Percent
3.5
Birth rate
3.3
3.1
Death rate
2.9
2.7
2.5
1992 1993
1994
1995
1996
1997
1998 1999
2000
2001
2002
2003 2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
Quarter
NOTE: Shaded areas represent recession periods. Data presented are for the third month of each quarter.
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Employment and Wages Annual Averages, 2008 • 23
www.bls.gov/cew