Posted May 29
“I would like to know where the thousands of Quebecers have gone, so that we can now speak of a labor shortage. Was there an exodus of Quebecers? I ask myself the question, because the shortage is felt in ALL areas.
Thierry Dugal
Shortage of lifeguards threatens opening of public swimming pools; the exodus of court clerks is playing tricks on the courthouses; queues stretch at short-staffed airports…
Everywhere, there is a lack of arms! And as in the classic Harmonium, many readers are wondering “where did all this people go” which has been sorely lacking in the labor market since the pandemic.
The answer has two parts, says Mia Homsy, president and CEO of the Institut du Québec.
The first part is structural. The aging of the population means that for every 100 workers aged 55 to 64 who potentially leave the labor market, there are only 80 workers aged 20 to 29 who enter it. This gap between the two cohorts has never been so wide.
The second part is situational. Because of the pandemic, Quebec received 18,000 fewer immigrants than expected in 2020, although the government has announced a catch-up in 2022.
Except that the economy has rebounded quickly, posting very strong growth of 6.5% in 2021. So employers need staff to meet demand.
If there is a shortage of workers everywhere, it is certainly not because Quebecers have remained with both feet on the beanbag. On the contrary, there have never been so many people at work. In fact, Quebec has 21,000 more workers than before the start of the pandemic, in February 2020.
Moreover, it is reassuring to know that Quebec has not been affected by the “Big Quit” observed in the United States, where workers have resigned in large numbers to reschedule their quality of life or bring their retirement.
Despite everything, the unemployment rate has never been so low, at 3.9%, a sign that the labor market is extremely tight.
In fact, a whole new dynamic has taken hold of the labor market, where there are now fewer unemployed people (180,000) than vacancies (238,000), underlines Ms.me Homesy.
To combat the labor shortage, Québec will have to use all the means at its disposal: review immigration thresholds, promote the productivity of businesses and public services, encourage workers to postpone their retirement, improve the training to enhance the skills of workers, eliminate unnecessary barriers that hinder the recognition of diplomas of foreign workers, etc.
With fewer arms, we have no choice: we have to rack our brains more.