(Ottawa) Temporary foreign workers recruited at great expense by companies established in the regions of Quebec are being courted and hired by companies doing business in Montreal or elsewhere in the country.
This phenomenon has taken on such proportions in recent months that business owners from Sept-Îles and Trois-Rivières, among other places, denounce this “poaching” which borders on “economic cannibalism”.
This situation, which accentuates the already acute labor shortage in the regions, arose a few months after the adoption of a ministerial directive by the Trudeau government which allows temporary foreign workers who have lost their jobs because of the COVID-19 pandemic to find another job elsewhere more quickly.
However, this ministerial directive, which is still in effect, has given rise to abuse, argue Guillaume Harvey, president and general manager of Le Groupe Nordique, in Sept-Îles, and David Guilbert, owner of LTR Location , in Three Rivers. They demand that Ottawa repeal this directive as quickly as possible in order to put an end to “this exodus of workers” which is hurting the regions.
Dozens of departures
The founding president of RM Recrutement International, Régis Michaud, who recruits workers abroad for local companies, also protests against the maintenance of this directive, which has given rise, according to him, to a parallel network of ‘recruitment agencies. The latter woo temporary foreign workers at little cost by dangling a kind of Klondike in Montreal or in other major cities in the country.
“Essentially, all temporary foreign workers are free to change jobs right now because of this directive,” Michaud said. Previously, he pointed out that a company must wait for Labor Market Impact Assessments (LMIAs) to be approved by Ottawa before hiring a foreign worker. Today, the company simply has to wait to receive an acknowledgment of receipt of its application for an LMIA to proceed with the hiring.
At the start of the pandemic, this ministerial directive was justified. But today it is no longer. It’s full employment everywhere. And the government is slow to withdraw this measure which was to be temporary.
Régis Michaud, founding president of RM Recrutement International
In all, his agency has listed at least 20 temporary foreign workers who have taken advantage of the new rules to quit their jobs voluntarily, resulting in net losses of nearly half a million dollars for companies that have sought his services.
Le Groupe Nordique alone has lost since last summer 8 of the 30 temporary foreign workers that the company had recruited in the Philippines to construction companies in Montreal, said Mr. Harvey. His company, which offers civil works, heavy equipment and container rental, demolition and site restoration services, among other things, spent an average of nearly $20,000 to recruit each of these employees. foreigners and bring them to Québec.
“We spent big bucks to get specialized workers. We are regulated by the government. […] We have been hiring foreign workers for 12 years. There is a long list of labor shortages in the country. We are being marauded by people, and it is costing us a meal, ”says Guillaume Harvey in an interview, visibly exasperated.
“We do everything according to the rules. But on the other hand, we have a government that complicates our lives,” he added, pointing out that his company offers accommodation and French lessons to foreign workers.
“The goal of our approach is for our workers to stay in Canada, learn French in Sept-Îles, not English in Montreal. »
Worthy of the “Wild West”
For its part, LTR Location is struggling with a similar problem. Six temporary foreign workers that the company has recruited abroad have also packed up to work in Montreal or elsewhere in the country, even though LTR Location has bought houses to accommodate them with their families.
“We are entitled to wonder who benefits from this measure which was to be temporary. This creates a situation comparable to the Wild West in the area of recruiting foreign workers. It’s a whole business model that is shaken when there is a serious shortage of labour,” said David Guilbert, owner of LTR Location. This company has specialized in equipment rental since 1978 and has more than 100 employees. Its annual turnover is nearly 30 million dollars.
Mr. Guilbert said he has decided to put the recruitment of foreign workers on hold until Ottawa corrects the situation. This could force his company to refuse contracts for lack of workers.
Business leaders intend to send a letter to the Minister of Immigration, Sean Fraser, and to Quebec MPs to denounce the situation. Minister Fraser’s office did not respond to questions from The Press at the time these lines were written.