• Institutional sector gained 2,100 jobs, representing a 1.0% increase.
• Other sector increased by 1,800 jobs or 4.3%
• Service sector grew by 1,400 jobs, or 0.9% due to increased employment in the sub-sector “Indoor Entertainment and Indoor Sporting and Recreation”
• Manufacturing sector declined, losing 13,200 jobs, representing a 9.2% drop.
• Retail sector also experienced a decrease in employment by 6,000 jobs, representing a 4.0% drop.
Source: City of Toronto, Employment Survey 2009
Key Sectors
Facts and Figures
Employment by Sector 2008-2009
Number of Establishments 2008-2009
In 2009, the total number of business establishments in the City of Toronto was 73,600. This is a decrease of 1,300 business establishments from 2008. This drop was small compared to the largest recorded decline of 2,800 establishments that took place in the early 1990s.
Toronto also experienced an influx of 3,820 new establishments to the City. These establishments were not necessarily all new business start-ups, but also included firms relocating from outside the City.
Source: City of Toronto, Employment Survey 2009
Finance and Insurance
(NAICS 52)
This sector is made up of establishments primarily engaged in financial transactions, (that is, transactions involving the creation, liquidation, or change in ownership of financial assets) or in facilitating financial transactions.
Industry Profile
According to the Toronto Financial Services Alliance, the City of Toronto is the financial services capital of Canada.Toronto has a sophisticated cluster of financial services companies, offering a range of quality services and expertise that rank among the best in the world.
City of Toronto is home to:
• The 3rd largest exchange in North America, and 7th largest in the world.
• Three of the world’s 25 largest banks and Canada’s 5 largest banks.
For many years, the Financial services and Manufacturing sectors were the main drivers of Toronto’s economy. However, employment in the manufacturing sector in Toronto declined by 32.5% from 2004-2009. This decline was the result of a complex combination of challenges and the global competition. The financial sector increased by 23.69% during the same period. The Financial sector in the Toronto CMA contributed an additional $6.2B in GDP — more than offsetting the $3.8B in GDP lost from manufacturing.
Number of Businesses
As of June 2009, there were about 17,600 businesses operating in the Finance and Insurance sector, 8.3% of the total businesses in Toronto. About 73% of these businesses operated in Securities, Commodity Contracts, Other Financial Investment and Related Activities subsector
Labour Force Characteristics
A total of 118,590 people work in this sector, accounting for 8.84% of the employment in the City of Toronto. Employment in the Finance and Insurance sector grew by 19.6% from 2004-2009 in Toronto CMA.
Occupations
8,535 jobs were created between 2001-2006 in the Finance and Insurance Industry. Loan officers, other financial officers, credit and other investment managers accounted for the largest categories in which jobs were created between these two Census periods.
Construction
(NAICS 23)
Industry Profile
The construction sector is one of the largest industries in the Toronto CMA and is crucial to the growth of the regional economy. This sector is made up of companies engaged in constructing, repairing and renovating buildings and engineering works and in subdividing and developing land. These firms may operate on their own or under contract to other establishments or property owners.
Number of Businesses
The majority of businesses in the Construction sector are small and medium enterprises. As of June 2009, there were 9,086 SME-s in the Specialty Trade Contractors, 5,731 SME-s in the Construction of Buildings and 2,374 SME-s in Heavy and Civil Engineering Construction.
Labour Force Characteristics
In 2009, there were 155,790 Toronto CMA residents employed in construction. Approximately 39% or 62,120 lived in the City of Toronto. From 2004-2009, the number of people working for an employer increased by 9.8% and the number for those self-employed fell by 2.6%. Employment in Specialty Trade Contractors (32,115 persons) and in Construction of Buildings (24,040 persons) made up the greatest share of the employed labour force in the Construction sector in the City of Toronto.
Occupations
Employment in Specialty Trade Contractors (32,115 persons) and in Construction of Buildings (24,040 persons) made up the greatest share of the employed labour force in the Construction sector in the city of Toronto.
Hospitality and Tourism
(NAICS 722) Food Services and Drinking Places
Industry Profile
This subsector of hospitality and tourism (NAICS 722) is made up of establishments
primarily engaged in preparing meals, snacks and beverages to customer order, for
immediate consumption on and off the premises. This industry is characterized by entry-level positions and often serves as a “first job” for youth entering the labour market.
Number of businesses
The majority of businesses in the Food Services and Drinking Places are small firms.
As of June 2009, there were 7,804 firms operating in this sector, accounting for 3.6%
of the total businesses
Labour Force Characteristics
138,160 people worked in the Food Services and Drinking Places in the Toronto CMA, and 49.4% live in the City of Toronto. The average annual growth employment rate in the sector was 3.3%. Most of the employment gains in the sector were in medium size establishments.
Between 2004-2009, employment in these companies increased by 127%. Employment
in large size establishments fell by 41.4%. 
Occupations
From 2001 to 2006, occupations related to food services and drinking places grew
at a rate of 0.19%.
Retail Trade
(NAICS 44-45)
The retail trade sector is made up of establishments primarily engaged in selling
merchandise, generally without transformation, and rendering services incidental to
the sale of merchandise.
Industry Profile
The Retail Trade, often seen as a “just in time” sector, has been growing for the past
10 years with an average employment growth rate of 2.2%. Most of the growth is
occurring in food and beverages. This rapid expansion has been driven by strong
growth in urban development and household formation as well as a continued
expansion of consumer demand in Toronto.
Number of Businesses
As of June 2009, there were 27,073 businesses operating in this sector. The majority
of businesses in Retail Trade are small and medium size firms. Decline in the number of firms occurred across all major Retail Trade subsectors.
Labour Force Characteristics
317,010 people worked in the Retail Trade sector in the Toronto CMA and 43.9% of
them lived in the City of Toronto. Between 2004 and 2009 employment in this sector
recorded a growth of 8.1%. The sector was affected by the economic downturn and
started to show signs of employment decline in late 2008.
Occupations
Toronto has a higher proportion of employees working in management and business, finance and administrative positions, a reflection of the larger proportion of retail head offices located in Toronto.
Arts and Entertainment
(NAICS 71)
This sector is made up of establishments primarily engaged in operating facilities or providing services to meet the cultural, entertainment and recreational interests of their customers. These establishments produce, promote or participate in live performances, events or exhibits intended for public viewing.
Industry Profile
Toronto is a creative city with an arts and entertainment sector that attracts business investment and a sophisticated workforce. The Arts and Entertainment sector has a location quotient above 1, indicating high employment specialization in the city relative to the rest of Ontario according to Census 2006.
Number of Businesses
The majority of businesses in the Arts and Entertainment sector are small firms. As of June 2009, there were 4,586 firms operating in this sector. Performing Arts, Spectator Sports and Related Industries accounted for a large share (81%) of the total businesses in the sector.
Labour Force Characteristics
66,730 people worked in the Arts and Entertainment industries in the Toronto CMA and 55.3% of them lived in the City of Toronto. The average annual growth employment rate in the sector between 2004 and 2009 was 2.8%. In 2009, 60% worked full time in these industries. Self-employment accredited for 37.8% of the labour force.
Occupations
Toronto’s creative workers are employed in the following broad industrial sectors:
• Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services Industries (38%)
• Information and Cultural Industries (23%)
• Arts, Entertainment, and Recreation (14%)
• Manufacturing Industries (11%)
From 2001 to 2006, arts and entertainment occupations grew at a rate of 7.5%.
Health Care
(NAICS 621) Ambulatory Health Care Services
This subsector comprises establishments primarily engaged in providing health care
services, directly or indirectly, to ambulatory patients. Health practitioners in this
subsector provide out-patient services, in which the facilities and equipment are not
usually the most significant part of the production process.
Industry Profile
Ambulatory and health care services in the City of Toronto have grown considerably
in the last 10 years, accounting for 3.97% of employment in the SMEs in Toronto.
This growth has been driven by a growing demand for health care services due to
an aging population with greater health needs, an aging workforce with high retirement
rates and advances in technology.
Number of Businesses
As of June 2009, there were 8,022 businesses,48 3.79% of the total businesses operating
in the health care sector. The majority of businesses in the Ambulatory Health Care
Services sector are small firms.
Labour Force Characteristics
80,780 people work in Ambulatory Health Care Services in the Toronto CMA. 45.9% live in the City of Toronto.49 Employment in the sector increased by 2.1% between 2004 and 2009. 39.8% of this labour force was self employed in 2009. Ontario Labour Market Adjustment Dynamics indicate that 141 jobs are created for every 100 jobs lost in this industry.
Occupations
Although the majority of health care workers are employed in the City’s 24 major
hospitals, a workforce of 20,000 workers are employed in the offices of physicians,
dentists and other health practitioners. About 26,621 are employed in ambulatory
health care services. Health care professionals project a shortage of 11,000 nurses in
Canada over the next decade. From 2001 to 2006, the number of people employed in occupations related to ambulatory health care services grew at a rate of 8.9%.
Information and Communications Technologies
ICT Sector
In 1998, OECD member countries agreed to define the ICT sector as “a combination of manufacturing and services industries that capture, transmit and display data and information electronically. This definition was considered to be a first step towards obtaining some initial measurements of ICT sector core indicators”.
Industry Profile
Information technology is a dynamic, multifaceted sector of Toronto’s economy. This sector is changing rapidly and radically and is composed of large numbers of small, rapidly growing companies as well as some very substantial, long-established firms. The Toronto region has the largest concentration of medium and large private ICT companies in Canada, and ranks third among major North American metropolitan areas.
Number of Businesses
While the ICT sector is well represented across the Greater Toronto Area, over 50% of the region’s ICT sector are located in the City of Toronto. Over 300 foreign companies have subsidiary operations in the Toronto region.
Labour Force Characteristics
The service side of the ICT cluster has the largest share of employment, followed by development and manufacturing. Most of the facilities are found in the development sector. 
New Media Sub-cluster
The New Media industry, a rapidly growing sub-culture, has a very strong influence on many clusters such as Film and Television. This industry is made up of businesses
whose main activity is providing technology products and services to media markets.
Firms in this cluster specialize in: animation, post-production, special effects, website
development, graphic design services and CD/DVD production. Within the GTA, approximately 60% of the firms are located in the City of Toronto.
Occupations
Although occupations related to the ICT sector are distributed across the main industry
sectors, most of the concentration is in the Manufacturing and Services sector.
Manufacturing
(NAICS 31-33)
This sector comprises establishments primarily engaged in the physical or chemical
transformation of materials or substances into new products. These products may be
either ready to use or raw material to use in making a new product.
Industry profile
The Greater Toronto Area is one of Canada’s largest manufacturing centres, employing
341,990 workers in hundreds of factories across the city. The largest manufacturing
subsectors are printing, food, metal industries, chemical industry, machinery, furniture
production and information technology.
Number of Businesses
Small and medium size firms dominate the manufacturing sector. Large firms are found
in food manufacturing, one of the most important industries for the City of Toronto.
As of June 2009, there were a total of 6,856 firms operating in the manufacturing
sector.75 Decline in the number of firms occurred across almost all Manufacturing
subsectors. The table below describes the main subsectors that were affected by this
decline. The only industry that recorded a gain of 2.1% in the number of firms was
Wood Product Manufacturing.
Labour Force Characteristics
In 2009, the number of people who worked in the Manufacturing sector in the Toronto
CMA was 341,990 and 40% of them lived in the City of Toronto.
In 1987, Toronto’s manufacturing sector accounted for one in every five jobs. Today,
that number has changed to about one in 10.
Occupations
From 2001 to 2006, the number of people employed in manufacturing occupations
decreased by 18%. Below is a list of top occupations that accounted for the growth
in the Manufacturing industry.
