Kevin Watson

… the high-tech meltdown resulted in an unprecedented increase in probability of experiencing a permanent layoff, the likes of which had never been seen in the sector or the rest of the economy. High-tech workings in Ottawa-Gatineau, a major technology cluster, were hit particularly hard. Those laid off saw a steep decline in their earnings – well above that experienced by any other group, even during the jobless recovery of the 1990s. Among laid-off high-tech workers overall, about 4 in 5 (80%) did not find jobs in the sector and about 1 in 3 moved to another city. In Ottawa-Gatineau, about 2 in 5 left the city. (Source Statistics Canada 2007)

READ KEVIN’S STORY HERE