The Age of Oregon’s Private Business Establishments

February 12, 2025

Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Business Employment Dynamics (BED) program can help measure the role of younger and older businesses in the Oregon labor market. The BED program uses data from the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages to measure employment and business survival rates by the age of privately owned establishments. An establishment is defined by the Bureau of Labor Statistics as an economic unit that produces goods or services, usually at a single physical location, and engages in one or predominantly one activity. In contrast, a firm can comprise one or more establishments under a common ownership by a corporate parent. The age of establishments is defined using the first quarter during which an establishment reports positive employment. 

In March 2024, Oregon was home to 135,171 private business establishments which employed over 1,670,000 workers. About 21,400 of those establishments (16%) were born before March 1993 and employed 41% of all private-sector workers. On the other side of the spectrum, 15,100 private establishments were less than one year old, representing 11% of all establishments. In contrast to the oldest businesses, these young businesses only employed 3% of all private workers. 

Oregon trended very similarly to the United States overall. With about 9,230,600 private establishments across the U.S., 11% of those establishments were less than a year old in March 2024 and they employed 3% of U.S. private employees. Oregon’s oldest businesses represented a slightly larger share than the U.S.’s. Across the U.S., establishments born before March 1993 made up 14% of all private establishments and employed 38% of workers. 

Looking the last 10 years, there has been a shift both in the age of establishments and where employment in those establishments was concentrated. From 2014 to 2024, the share of private establishments that were 21 years and older has remained relatively stable. Over those years, the share of older private establishments has remained between 27% and 30%. However, the share of Oregon establishments between 11 and 20 years old has decreased from 23% in 2014 to 17% in 2024. The youngest of establishments, those 10 years and younger, has increased from 48% in 2014 to 56% in 2024. Oregon experienced a similar trend to the U.S. overall. Establishments less than 10 years old increased from 52% in 2014 to 57% in the U.S., while establishments 21 years and older remained relatively flat and those 11 to 20 years old decreased from 22% to 17%. 

At the same time the average age of establishments was decreasing, the share of Oregon employment became more concentrated in older businesses. The share of employment in businesses 21 years and older increased from 52% in 2014 to 57% in 2024. The share of employment in businesses between 11 and 21 years old decreased from 24% to 18% in 2024. The share of employment at establishments 10 years and younger remained relatively stable. The same trend was seen across the U.S., with the share of employment at businesses ages 21 years or older increasing from 49% in 2014 to 56% in 2024.