November 2007, vol. 9, no. 3 - Peformance Trends

• Business insolvencies, which include bankruptcies¹ and proposals,² totalled 1908 by the end of the second quarter of 2007, representing a 9.1-percent decrease from the first quarter of 2007, the fourteenth consecutive quarter-over-quarter decrease.
• The number of payroll employees increased in the first quarter of 2007 by 285 728 compared with the first quarter of 2006. Large businesses contributed 52.9 percent of the annual growth in employment, compared with a contribution of 19.4 percent from medium-sized businesses and 27.7 percent from small businesses.³
• The mining and oil and gas extraction sector experienced a 9.9-percent increase in payroll employment, the largest among all sectors.
• The share of self-employed workers with a post-secondary and university education reached 59.3 percent in 2006, an increase from 53.2 percent in 2000.

¹ Bankruptcy refers to the liquidation of the debtor's business assets and the end of the commercial entity's operations.

² Proposals involve the settling of debts between the debtor and its creditors while still allowing the business to continue operating.

³ Small businesses are defined as having fewer than 100 employees, medium-sized businesses having 100 to 499 employees and large businesses having 500 or more employees.

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