(Montreal) Quebec employers are calling on the government to act urgently and forcefully to tackle the labor shortage.
As the presentation of the Legault government’s economic update approaches, six major employers’ organizations delivered to Montreal a list of five demands on Friday in order to counter what they call an unprecedented crisis and even a catastrophic situation. in the Quebec economy.
At the top of the list, the organizations are calling for an acceleration of the immigration process, blaming the much longer delays in Quebec than elsewhere in the country, especially since the pandemic has slowed the arrival of new immigrants.
Still in immigration, they are calling for greater regionalization of immigration to meet regional needs.
Employers’ organizations also insist on the introduction of measures to keep or bring older workers back into employment.
Finally, they are calling for support for SMEs to requalify the workforce and support to facilitate the establishment of new technologies and the modernization of businesses.
The organizations that launched this call on Friday are the Union of Quebec Municipalities (UMQ), the Employers’ Council (CPQ), the Quebec Retail Council (CQCD), the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) ), the Federation of Chambers of Commerce of Quebec (FCCQ) and Manufacturers and Exporters of Quebec (MEQ)
Although they represent, with the exception of the UMQ, private employers, the organizations insisted on the need to put in place such measures to also fill the lack of employees in the public sector, especially in health, in education and early childhood.