Many “paying jobs” will soon be created in the regions of Quebec, which will encourage families to move there, Prime Minister François Legault recently declared.1. Is this realistic? Opinions are very divided.
Is this a good plan?
“I try to be neutral, but I am very angry,” says Frédéric Laurin, professor of economics at the University of Quebec at Trois-Rivières (UQTR) and specialist in regional economic development. “Basing the region’s economy on the large foreign multinational” is an “old mentality,” he denounces. “These are models 30 or 40 years old which are still relevant today… for devitalized areas of poor countries! »
For regions that have lost large employers, like Trois-Rivières, Mr. Legault’s “industrial renaissance” would nevertheless be a blessing, right?
A city may be of interest to “large companies that come to settle because it brings tax revenue,” agrees Mr. Laurin, who has studied Mauricie and Center-du-Québec extensively. “But from the point of view of economic development, I want us to work with the companies present in the region. Because the real economy is entrepreneurship, creativity, innovation, risk-taking. »
By the way, what is a “paid job”?
“If a company creates jobs at $50 an hour and another at $20 an hour, I choose the one at $50 an hour,” François Legault recently declared. “It is certain that if we have jobs worth $100,000 per year which replace other jobs worth $50,000 per year, that brings additional income,” he emphasized last year. “Every time I bring in an immigrant who earns less than $56,000, I make my problem worse,” he said in a private meeting of the Conseil du patronat du Québec (CPQ), in 2021.
No one can be against virtue!
“The Prime Minister should not create a hierarchy of jobs based on remuneration,” opposes the CEO of the CPQ, Karl Blackburn. “All jobs are important to support the vitality of our communities, from Val-d’Or to Gaspé. We need people to operate our restaurants, our hospitals, our local businesses, our construction sites. » In a context of full employment, large multinationals “hyper-subsidized at unprecedented levels” risk “stealing employees from SMEs”, adds Professor Frédéric Laurin.
PHOTO FRANÇOIS ROY, LA PRESSE ARCHIVES
The CEO of the Quebec Employers Council, Karl Blackburn
That’s a lot of pots. Are there flowers?
Several, notably on the North Shore, the only region where the population has not increased according to the latest count from the Institut de la tourisme du Québec (ISQ)2. “It’s music to my ears,” said Denis Miousse, mayor of Sept-Îles and prefect of the MRC of Sept-Rivières. “That smiles at me. We have a community of 7,500 people with infrastructure for 10,000 to 15,000 population,” says Manon Cyr, mayor of Chibougamau, in Nord-du-Québec. “We like to hear that from the Prime Minister. The goal is to bring people back to the regions, to keep the regions healthy and alive,” rejoices Frédéric Raymond, general director of Place aux Jeunes, which supports qualified workers aged 18 to 35 who wish to settle down. in the region.
PHOTO CHARLES WILLIAM PELLETIER, ARCHIVES SPECIAL COLLABORATION
The mayor of Chibougamau, Manon Cyr
Are urban dwellers really going to move to the regions?
In Abitibi-Témiscamingue, on the Côte-Nord and in Nord-du-Québec, the opposite has been happening for years: these regions are losing more inhabitants to the rest of Quebec than they are gain some. And across the province, interregional migration is at its lowest level in 20 years. “So much the better if there are Quebecers who move from Plateau Mont-Royal and want to come and live in Jonquière. But if we want to respond to the jobs that Mr. Legault is talking about, we must also maintain our international students,” argues Sylvain Gaudreault, president of the Regroupement des cégeps de regions. The fact that Quebec wants to limit the number of foreign students concerns its members. In certain CEGEPs, including Saint-Félicien and Matane, international students represent more than 30% of the clientele. “It shows how important it is to provide labor in these communities: there are many who come here and ultimately decide to stay. »
What more would be needed?
“We need humans who come to live, and not just people who come fly-in, fly-out,” underlines the mayor of Chibougamau. Almost 25% of jobs in its region are held by workers from other regions, show data compiled by the James Bay Regional Administration. Chibougamau builds housing and leisure infrastructure, but “fiscal measures” are needed, such as a home ownership program, a more generous tax credit for new graduates, and “less taxes”, argues Mme Cyr.
1. Read “Legault wants to convince Quebecers to move to the regions”
2. Explore the marked decline in interregional migration