Statistics Canada
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Research and development workers in demand
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The R&D that will bring tomorrow’s scientific and technical advances is done by highly trained, talented people.
In 2006, 226,250 researchers, technicians and support staff worked on R&D activities in Canada, up 4.2% from 2005, and up 55% from 1997.
Researchers in natural sciences and engineering accounted for a large share of the growth over that period. Their numbers swelled 57% from 1997 to 2006: 73% of them worked in business enterprises in 2006.
The business enterprise sector employed a growing share of all R&D personnel, from 57% in 1997 to 66% in 2006.
The higher education sector gained 27% more R&D personnel from 1997 to 2006, but its share of R&D personnel shrank 6 points from 31% in 1997 to 25% in 2006.
Three-quarters of total R&D personnel worked in Ontario and Quebec in 2006. These provinces host a significant share of the organizations that perform R&D in Canada.
