“A wall is coming” in the manufacturing sector since the announcement of the reduction in immigration thresholds by Ottawa and Quebec.
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The situation “creates a lot of uncertainty about the ability to produce, fulfill contracts and export products” in the manufacturing sector, argued Julie White, spokesperson for Manufacturers and Exporters Quebec.
“We have around 13,000 vacant positions today,” she explained during an interview with LCN on Friday morning.
If companies “seek to acquire workers in Quebec first,” they are often forced to pay colossal sums to hire abroad, according to the spokesperson.
“They make the effort, they try, but they turn to immigration, then to temporary immigration, not just for pleasure or simplicity. It’s complicated to take these steps. It costs up to $12,000 per worker,” she argued.
“They do it because they no longer have a choice. And there, we find ourselves in a situation where we are increasingly reducing the labor pool from which they can draw,” she added.
Watch the full interview in the video above
