Switzerland as a location for research and manufacturing is important. The breakdown of the workforce of the ten largest companies in this sector shows that almost 13 % of their employees world-wide have their workplace in Switzerland. All companies in this sector employ about 308'000 persons in their branch offices and subsidiaries outside Switzerland.
Currently the total number of employees in the entire chemical and pharmaceutical industry in Switzerland is 65'000 (2011); about half of these positions are in small and medium sized enterprises.