A boss of an accounting office in the MRC of Bonaventure, in Gaspésie, unable to find an accounting technician in her part of the country, has just hired one from the Saint-Michel district, in Montreal.
“In the region, there was zero interaction. Zero interest,” says Diane Beausoleil, owner of Service Multi-Disciplinaire, located in the village of Caplan, in Gaspésie.
Unable to find an accounting technician in her region for weeks as tax season approached, she decided to take the bull by the horns by advertising her job offer across Quebec.
“We received around thirty CVs, three of which were interesting. We had some in the Laurentians, in Montreal and in Longueuil, ”she continues.
Even if she breathes a sigh of relief today after having found the rare pearl in February, in Montreal, Diane Beausoleil finds herself with hundreds of dollars more to pay each month to welcome her.
“I have to invest with Office 365 with Teams. I need to pay more monthly installments of other external software to be able to do the work remotely,” she illustrates.
Savings of $350
Nearly 850 kilometers away, her new employee since February, Julie Levasseur, sees only the good in her life.
“It’s my business,” she says on the phone.
No more traffic jams, no more childcare costs, no more stress… the accounting technician loves working with Diane, who is accommodating. She savors her new quality of life every day, which allows her to breathe a little.
“I don’t have the headache of working on the roads in the morning. I don’t pay for after-school care. I’m saving a good $200 a month on gas,” she breathes.
However, even if these telework positions can smile on the candidates, it is another story for the bosses of SMEs, according to François Vincent, vice-president for Quebec of the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB).
“How are we going to make them live, the regions, if all the workers are at a distance? he asks himself aloud.
“For the vitality of the regions, it takes people,” he pleads.
Negative effects
At LogFrançois Vincent brandishes a study on the impact of telework on companies carried out at the start of the pandemic, which paints a rather gloomy portrait of the new reality of teleworkers.
Decreased productivity (34%), communication (36%), team cohesion (53%)… not to mention the increasing cost of office equipment (39%), telework can harm businesses, according to the CFIB.
The lack of meetings (49%), the difficulty of management (47%) and employees’ access to a high-speed connection (31%) are of concern to the bosses.
“There are limits to having to hire 100% telecommuting,” concludes François Vincent of the CFIB.
♦ Last December, The Journal had told the story of Monique L. Fortinan accountant from Maniwaki, who deplored the shortage of accountants in the region.