Labor Day 2026: What Business Owners Should Review Before the End of the Year

Labor Day is a time to recognize the contributions of American workers and the businesses that depend on them. But for business owners, the holiday can also be a good reminder to pause, review the numbers and make sure the business is prepared for the months ahead.

With only a few months remaining in 2026, there are several areas worth reviewing, from employee protection and business insurance to payment-processing costs and other operating expenses.

Here are five areas business owners may want to put on their year-end review list.

1. Employee Protection

If your business has employees, protecting your workforce should be a priority.

In California, employers with one or more employees generally must maintain workers' compensation coverage. Workers' compensation provides benefits for employees who experience work-related injuries or illnesses.

This year, California's Insurance Commissioner adopted a 2026 workers' compensation average advisory pure premium rate of $1.65 per $100 of payroll, a 6.6% increase from the 2025 approved rate.

But what does that actually mean for a business owner?

The $1.65 is not necessarily the amount you will pay for workers' compensation insurance. It is an advisory benchmark that reflects the expected cost of workers' compensation losses. Insurance companies use this and other factors when determining the premiums they charge businesses.

For example, if a particular classification had an advisory pure premium rate of $1.65 per $100 of payroll, $100,000 in payroll would correspond to $1,650 in pure premium at that benchmark. That does not mean the employer's final insurance bill will be $1,650 because the actual premium can be affected by other factors, including the business's classifications, payroll, insurer pricing and other applicable costs.

Why does this matter? Changes in the workers' compensation cost environment can affect what businesses should budget for insurance. Business owners should also review their coverage when payroll increases, employees' job duties change, new employees are hired or business operations expand.

2. Is Your Business Insurance Keeping Up With Your Business?

Businesses don't always stay the same from one year to the next.

Maybe you've added equipment, moved into a larger space, hired employees, started offering a new service, purchased a company vehicle or expanded into another area of your business.

Those changes can affect your insurance needs.

The California Department of Insurance recommends that businesses periodically review their risks and insurance coverage as the business grows. Commercial insurance can help protect businesses against losses involving property damage, business interruption, theft, liability and worker injury.

The U.S. Small Business Administration similarly recommends reassessing business insurance annually because liabilities can change as a business grows.

Before the end of the year, take a look at your current policies and ask whether they still reflect the business you operate today. If your current coverage no longer reflects the business you operate today, Stephanie Jones, an independent California insurance agent, can help you review your needs and get started with a free quote.

3. Are Payment-Processing Costs Eating Into Revenue?

Payment processing is another recurring business expense worth reviewing.

If your business accepts credit or debit cards, your monthly merchant statement can contain multiple types of charges. Visa explains that interchange is one component of the overall merchant discount paid by merchants to their financial institutions, while Mastercard notes that interchange is one component of the merchant discount rate established by acquirers.

That makes your merchant statement worth understanding, particularly if your sales volume or transaction patterns have changed.

Consider reviewing:

• Monthly processing fees
• Per-transaction charges
• Statement or service fees
• Equipment or software charges
• Chargeback-related costs
• Your effective processing rate

Even a small difference in recurring expenses can add up over the course of a year.

Not sure what you're actually paying?  You can start by using the Payment Processing Cost Calculator to check your numbers, then upload your most recent merchant processing statement for a closer review. As a Regional Account Manager with Valued Merchant Services, I can provide a preliminary analysis of your statement and help you understand what you're currently paying and where there may be opportunities to reduce your processing costs.

4. Look at the Costs That Have Changed

This Labor Day weekend, U.S. gasoline prices reached a record high for the holiday, with the national average reported at approximately $4.14 per gallon. Diesel prices also reached record levels, which can have a broader effect on transportation and delivery costs.

For businesses that rely on vehicles, deliveries, travel or shipping, fuel costs can have a direct impact on the bottom line.

That makes this a good time to review other recurring expenses as well.

Look at fuel, supplies, software subscriptions, equipment, utilities, payroll-related expenses and other costs that may have increased during the year.

The goal isn't necessarily to cut every expense. It's to understand where your money is going and determine whether each expense is still providing value to the business.

5. Start Planning Before January Arrives

The end of the year can arrive quickly.

The recent August jobs report showed that U.S. employers added 162,000 jobs, while unemployment remained at 4.1%. For business owners, changes in the labor market, operating costs and the broader economy can all affect decisions about hiring, benefits, insurance and expenses.

Rather than waiting until January to start planning, use the final months of 2026 to review what worked, what changed and what needs attention.

A simple year-end review might include:

Protect: Are your insurance policies keeping up with your business?

Review: Are you paying for services and expenses that still make sense?

Prepare: Are you ready for changes in staffing, payroll or operations?

Plan: What do you want your business to accomplish in 2027?

Labor Day Is a Good Time to Pause and Review

Labor Day is ultimately about recognizing the people whose work keeps businesses, communities and the economy moving.

For business owners, that makes it an appropriate time to look beyond the day-to-day responsibilities of running a company and consider whether the business is adequately protected and positioned for the months ahead.

A few hours spent reviewing insurance coverage, employee protection, payment-processing costs and recurring expenses now could help you enter the final months of 2026 with a clearer picture of where your business stands.

At Get Jones Solutions, the goal is simple: Learn, Plan, Protect what matters.