"At Least 1,852" Canadian Jobs Lost Since Early 1993

As many as 2,000 jobs may have been lost from the Canadian research-based drug industry since early 1993, according to a new report from the Canadian drug Manufacturers Association, which represents the generics industry.

The study says that, based on the research companies' own announcements, 1,852 jobs have gone over this period, 1,091 of which were due to industry mergers and the remaining 761 the result of downsizing. The CDMA adds that while it has private information which would put these losses even higher, this data is hard to verify. Nevertheless, it says, the study shows for the first time how much this powerful industry has shrunk since the federal government agreed to grant the research-based industry extra patent protection in 1987, under the C-91 patent law amendments, in exchange for undertakings to increase investment. While the research firms had promised more jobs, the net effect has been the opposite, it says.

The findings are disputed by the Pharmaceutical manufacturers Association of Canada, which represents the research-based companies. PMAC president Judy Erola says that data from Peat Marwick and Deloitte & Touche shows that jobs in the research-based industry fell by 615 from 1993 to 1994, from 17,261 to 16,641, and that since 1987 employment in PMAC companies has grown 14.6%, far more than the growth in employment nationwide, which has been only 6.5%.