I'm sorry.
Madam Chairperson and honourable members, on behalf of the Direct Sellers Association, I want to thank you for the opportunity to comment on Bill C-56, the Fairness for the Self-Employed Act.
I have with me today Lynda Rose, vice-president of sales and marketing for Mary Kay Cosmetics, and immediate past chairman of the Canadian Direct Sellers Association.
Since 1954, the Direct Sellers Association of Canada has established and upheld rigorous standards, ethics, and good business practices as the recognized voice of our industry. As an industry that connects more than 1.3 million Canadians to entrepreneurial opportunity and enrichment, we provide an assurance of member integrity and a foundation of trust for independent sales contractors and consumers.
Our 45 member companies, which include such well-known names as Amway, Mary Kay, Avon, and Tupperware, and their independent sales contractors market and distribute a wide range of products and services directly to consumers, usually but not exclusively in the consumer's home rather than in traditional retail establishments. Generally, these products and services are sold in the context of group presentations known as the party plan, or on a personal consultation basis. I know that some of you joined us last week at a parliamentary reception where many of our companies showcased their products and services.
Direct selling contributes significantly to the Canadian economy. Our labour pool includes some 3,900 permanent employees and, importantly for today's deliberations, over one million independent sales contractors who earned an estimated $1.1 billion in income. In a socio-economic impact study conducted by Ernst and Young, the industry's total impact on the Canadian economy, when using an income multiplier, was in excess of $1.56 billion.
The direct-selling industry is also a vital part of the small business sector in Canada, investing in entrepreneurial and human capital. Our industry has a tremendous capacity to create jobs and to promote entrepreneurial activity amongst Canadians.
We provide accessible business opportunities, with little or no investment, that are open to all Canadians, without any restrictions with respect to gender, age, education, knowledge, or previous experience. The socio-economic study I mentioned earlier also found that that 21% of direct sellers are high-school graduates, 49% have some college or university education, and 27% are college or university graduates.
People enter direct selling for a variety of reasons, including unemployment. The same study found that 11% of direct sellers were unemployed prior to entering the industry.
We are an industry where females play a major role, with 88% of direct sellers being women. Additionally, 81% are married, and 56% worked full-time and 15% worked part-time prior to entering the industry, with 12% representing more than one direct-selling company.
These are some of the reasons why the benefits that would be made available under Bill C-56 are important to us.
The capacity of our industry to create opportunities for self-employment has brought us to recent discussions with HRSDC. We are working with the minister and her department to ensure that these opportunities are available to all and especially to those on regular employment insurance benefits who are considering self-employment.
That is why we are so pleased to be here today to support Bill C-56. Any action to level the playing field between the employed and the self-employed is something we fully support.
It is premature for me to speculate on the potential level of participation we could expect, but we certainly anticipate that this would be appealing to our independent sales contractors should this bill become law. For those who do participate, it is because they will have made a determination that is right for them and for their circumstances. Having that choice available is critical.
Canadians who are self-employed, or those who are considering self-employment, will no longer have to accept that theirs is a lesser option. They can make the choice knowing there is support available for them, as there is for the traditionally employed. This can only be a positive step forward for the self-employed.
We applaud the minister for this measure and we applaud members from all parties who pledge to pass this bill without undue delay.
Thank you, Madam Chairperson.