The Census and Safety

Tuesday, May 15 is Census Day in Canada. On that day about 31 million people across Canada will "count themselves in" when they complete and mail their census forms. By participating in the census, residents across the country play an important role in shaping Canada's future.

Governments at all levels use census data to make policy decisions about Canada's economic and social programs. Census data are used by many programs which affect the safety of Canadians including:

• National Child Care Information Centre
• Canadian Human Rights Commission
• Railway Safety Act
• Special Measure and Initiative Program
• Urban Transportation Assistance
• National Advisory Council on Aging
• Advisory Services on Housing for Children and the Elderly
• Housing Assistance for Seniors' Independence
• Canadian Labour Code
• Services to Handicapped People
• Disabled Persons Participation Program
• Canada Manpower Mobility Program
• Bureau of Rehabilitation
• Emergency Preparedness Program
• The Canadian Agriculture Safety Program (CASP)

In communities across Canada, census data provide the numbers to confirm the need for services such as police and fire protection, hospitals, recreation centres, retirement homes, and bus routes.

Solid statistical information is key to taking effective action on farm health and safety issues. The 1996 Census of Agriculture asked, for the first time, a question about on-farm injuries requiring medical attention. Census facts revealed that:

• In 1995, the last complete year before the census, 15,460 farm operators, or 4 per cent of the total, received a farm-related injury requiring medical attention.
• Male operators were twice as likely to get injured as their female counterparts.
  

Census of population data will provide information about the mode of transportation to work and the number of people working at home. Municipalities can use this information to come up with safe, creative alternatives to rush-hour congestion, which could include better and safer roads and bike paths, or more car-pools.

Because the census gathers information on the age and number of persons living in each household in Canada, these data can be used by organizations working with seniors.

By law, each household must provide the information requested in the census and by the same law, Statistics Canada must protect the confidentiality of the personal information provided by respondents. Only Statistics Canada employees who have taken an oath of secrecy and who work directly with census data will see the completed questionnaires.

1996 Census Facts

• About 8.9 million people, or 73 per cent of the working population, drove to work in their automobile.
• Almost 900,000 people, or seven per cent, travelled as a passenger with someone else doing the driving.
• About 79 per cent of the male working population drove to work, compared with 67 per cent of the female working population.
• Thirteen per cent of working women took public transit, and 8 per cent walked to work.
• Eight per cent of men took public transit and six per cent walked to work.

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