Quebec wants to recruit 3,000 foreign workers
”Some 17 international recruitment missions are planned by March 2023 in French-speaking countries, France, Colombia and Morocco”reports The Journal of Quebec.
”The government is particularly targeting professions in high demand in a context of labor shortages”, says the Quebec Minister of Labor, Jean Boulet. The site of his government specifies that the recruitment mission for France concerns employers both in the field of administration and in the sectors of education, engineering, health, educational childcare services and information technology.
”Other sectors hard hit by the labor shortage, including hotels, restaurants, transportation and manufacturing, are also taken into account in the program of the Journées Québec 2022-2023”specifies the daily.
The pre-selection of applications will end on May 29. Interviews for the Journées Québec France will take place in virtual mode from June 13 to 18.
Much greater needs
In all, Quebec wants to attract 3,000 immigrants, ”double the number recruited in 2021-2022”precise Radio Canada, who adds that the focus will be on French-speaking or Francophile countries. Minister Boulet declared that, for his province,
”French is a key factor in successful integration and the retention rate, particularly in the regions”.
A steel structure manufacturing company tells the national broadcaster that it doubts that this new announcement of recruitment missions will change the situation. ”There are approximately 11,000 vacancies [dans la région de] Chaudiere-Appalaches. Take these 3,000 people, just in Chaudière-Appalaches, that does not meet the needs”says Jean-Philippe Dussault, Director of Human Resources at Supermétal.
In the Quebec region, note Radio Canada, 27,000 jobs did not find takers in April. The Minister also recognizes the problem: ”We anticipate that, from 2021 to 2030, there will be approximately 1.4 million positions to be filled”. His government wants 22% of Quebec’s labor needs to be met by foreign workers.
Despite this, writes The Press, ”The government does not plan to revise upwards Quebec’s immigration thresholds, maintained at around 50,000 newcomers annually”.
