Labor Minister Jean Boulet wants more foreign temporary workers in the construction industry and is not afraid that they will become “workers”.cheap labor» in the industry when their knowledge is recognized for its true value.
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“If we recognize well the skills and abilities acquired, it should not be a cause for concern,” replied Labor Minister Jean Boulet to the Journal on the sidelines of the Congress of the Association of Building and Construction Professionals. l’habitation du Québec (APCHQ), Thursday.
“We have to go through different pools, including immigrants, especially through recruiting missions,” he explained.
Last Thursday, Ottawa extended measures allowing up to 30% foreign workers in construction from October 30 to August 30.
“It is the addition of multiple solutions: women, young people, people with disabilities, people from First Nations, visible minorities, people from abroad,” he explained.
Last September, Jean Boulet said in an interview with Le Journal that he was running a pilot project to recruit carpenters abroad in Tunisia or even painters in Colombia.
- Listen to the interview with Éric Boisjoly, General Director of FTQ-Construction QUB radio :
“More than an emergency»
However, for the contractors who met at the APCHQ Congress on Friday, we should act faster and step on the accelerator.
Although Quebec accounts for 23% of the country’s population, less than 1.2% of temporary foreign worker (TEF) applications come from here.
“Next year there will be a shortage of between 10,000 and 15,000 workers. “It is urgent to find workers where they are,” emphasized Guillaume Houle, spokesman for the Association de la construction du Québec (ACQ).
Just a stone’s throw away, Pierre Boivin, president of Constructions Boivin, which has a turnover of more than $20 million, had a lot to say on the subject.
Pierre Boivin, President of Constructions Boivin Photo Francis Halin
The hardest thing for him to accept is that he is inundated with calls from workers from abroad who want to help him, but delays and bureaucracy spoil the game. “There is more than one emergency,” denounced the man.
“I could take about thirty tomorrow morning, but it’s the paperwork that’s holding up,” he denounced.
Pay at the same hourly rate
When we tell him that some are afraid that they will become cheap labor, he replies that this is unlikely to happen anytime soon.
“You will receive the same price as these. We want to recognize their experience here,” assures the head of Constructions Boivin.
Remember, according to Randy Boissonnault, Canada’s Minister of Employment and Workforce Development, this program “must support wage growth, not hinder it.”
When producing food, wood or furniture, we can use 30% foreign workers. There is also the opportunity to recruit in the accommodation and food services industry, hospitals, nursing, home care and construction.
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