Despite $14.5 billion transfers from the federal and Ontario governments to General Motors and Chrysler in 2009 – all in the name of preserving jobs in a struggling economy – employment in the Canadian automotive sector continues to fall.
A study by industry analyst Dennis DesRosier shows that employment totalled 127,352 jobs as of September 2010, down 875 from one year ago. At its peak in 2001, Canada’s automotive sector employed 198,098 people.
The decreasing number of Canadians working for the various automakers can be explained in two ways. One is the significant drop in new vehicle sales since 2000 and the other is the rise and decline of some car companies.
In 2009, GM built only 243,580 units compared to almost one million in 2000. As a percentage of Canada’s total automobile production, GM’s market share melted from 32.5 percent in 2000 to just 16.4 percent nine years later.
Chrysler’s fall was similar, with 704,081 cars and trucks produced at the turn of the millennium and a mere 314,504 in 2009, or 21.1 percent of the entire Canadian production.
Of course, foreign nameplates like Honda and Toyota kept expanding at the same time. Back in 2000, Ford, Chrysler and GM accounted for 56.3 percent of all cars and trucks built in Canada. Nine years later, it's 37.5 percent. Conversely, the two Japanese brands combined for 38.5 percent in 2000 and 54.9 percent in 2009.
Canadian taxpayers gave $14.5 billion to bail GM and Chrysler out of bankruptcy and preserve jobs in the country, while Honda and Toyota are producing more and more vehicles and investing massively in our economy. Ford recovered nicely and once again invests money in Canada. GM and Chrysler seem to care a lot more about the United States, where they invest huge sums in various assembly plants. Meanwhile, their number of employees north of the border enjoys a steady decline.
Source: Fraser Institute
A study by industry analyst Dennis DesRosier shows that employment totalled 127,352 jobs as of September 2010, down 875 from one year ago. At its peak in 2001, Canada’s automotive sector employed 198,098 people.
The decreasing number of Canadians working for the various automakers can be explained in two ways. One is the significant drop in new vehicle sales since 2000 and the other is the rise and decline of some car companies.
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| Photo: General Motors |
In 2009, GM built only 243,580 units compared to almost one million in 2000. As a percentage of Canada’s total automobile production, GM’s market share melted from 32.5 percent in 2000 to just 16.4 percent nine years later.
Chrysler’s fall was similar, with 704,081 cars and trucks produced at the turn of the millennium and a mere 314,504 in 2009, or 21.1 percent of the entire Canadian production.
Of course, foreign nameplates like Honda and Toyota kept expanding at the same time. Back in 2000, Ford, Chrysler and GM accounted for 56.3 percent of all cars and trucks built in Canada. Nine years later, it's 37.5 percent. Conversely, the two Japanese brands combined for 38.5 percent in 2000 and 54.9 percent in 2009.
Canadian taxpayers gave $14.5 billion to bail GM and Chrysler out of bankruptcy and preserve jobs in the country, while Honda and Toyota are producing more and more vehicles and investing massively in our economy. Ford recovered nicely and once again invests money in Canada. GM and Chrysler seem to care a lot more about the United States, where they invest huge sums in various assembly plants. Meanwhile, their number of employees north of the border enjoys a steady decline.
Source: Fraser Institute