The world of work is changing. Possibly motivated by inequality in the workplace or just a drive to reach the most success they possibly can, more and more Canadian women are self-employed than ever before. Between 1991 and 1996, the number of self-employed women grew 44.3% and we have no reason to believe that this figure has continued to increase since that date. This growth was and continues to be experienced in every province across the nation.

Self-employed women are likely to be highly educated and fairly young. Most female entrepreneurs are under the age of 30. This group rose a solid 30% between 1991 and 1996. Compare this to just a 4% increase among young men. Shattering yet another stereotype, female entrepreneurs are more likely to be married than Canadian women in general (77% vs. 58%): this implies these women are far from being “anti-male”.

A large proportion of these woman-owned businesses are home-based. The most common area of work is the provision of business services: a virtual secretary, so to speak, working from home. The rise of the internet clearly has been a huge factor. Home-based businesses are also much more popular among women who have children, helping them better balance the demands of family life and work. This significantly reduces the costs of child care.

For more on this rising trend, check out the article on about.com.