Temporary workers: Quebec deems Ottawa acted ‘very clumsily’

After insisting the federal government should reduce the number of temporary immigrants in Quebec, Minister Jean-François Roberge now believes Ottawa was too “tough” and acted “very clumsily” regarding the temporary foreign worker program, especially in the regions.

“Our regional economy is paying the price right now,” the minister said at a press briefing Thursday at the National Assembly.

Pressure is mounting on Quebec as businesses in the regions fear having to close due to labour shortages.

“We are asking Ottawa to protect temporary foreign workers who are in Quebec outside of Montreal and Laval. The grandfather clause is extremely important,” Minister Roberge maintained.

Last year, Ottawa imposed a 10 per cent limit on the number of low-wage temporary foreign workers a company can hire.

“We asked Ottawa to distribute asylum seekers, to review visa issuance, and to be much stricter because many people arrive here under false pretenses,” the minister added.

According to Statistics Canada, there are approximately 562,000 temporary immigrants in Quebec.

Consultations on immigration planning for the years 2026 to 2029 began Wednesday evening.

Roberge has already signaled his desire to reduce permanent immigration thresholds. He proposed three scenarios for the next four years: 25,000, 35,000, or 45,000 permanent immigrants per year.

Quebec plans to welcome approximately 64,000 permanent immigrants in 2025. In 2024, this number was close to 60,000.

‘Under pressure’

The Quebec Hotel Association voiced its concerns to the government during Thursday’s consultations. It fears significant impacts on the industry due to immigration policies.

“By seeking to rapidly and massively reduce the number of temporary and permanent foreign workers, these political decisions risk undermining several sectors of the Quebec economy, weakening economic growth, degrading the visitor experience, and jeopardizing businesses that are already under pressure,” said the association’s CEO, Véronyque Tremblay, in the National Assembly on Thursday.

The association is calling, in particular, for the renewal of permits for temporary foreign workers already present in the country for two years and for the limit to be increased from 10 per cent to 20 per cent “for the most critical positions in the hospitality industry.”

It is also calling for more international students to be welcomed into this sector.

‘Weaken’

For its part, the Association restauration Québec is calling on the Legault government to reach an agreement with the federal government to increase the 10 per cent cap on temporary foreign workers to 30 per cent in the tourism sector.

“Quebec cannot afford to further weaken a sector that contributes to its economic vitality, the attractiveness of its regions, and the influence of its culture. To achieve this, the Quebec government must review its guidelines for temporary economic immigration. At the very least, it must be made easier to keep temporary foreign workers currently in Quebec in the workforce,” the brief submitted to the National Assembly states.

The association also calls for Francisation Québec to “establish a workplace francization program for temporary foreign workers in the restaurant industry.”

“The open bar approach must no longer continue.”

Economist Pierre Fortin echoed this sentiment. He denounced the business community’s “fierce opposition” to the decline in immigration and asserted that it is dependent on “cheap labor.” He also maintains that immigration has “zero impact” on the labor shortage.

“The open bar approach must no longer continue,” he declared Thursday during consultations on immigration planning.

The UQAM professor emeritus of economics has blasted Canada’s immigration policy since 2016, which has been an “economic and social catastrophe” whose “first victims are the immigrants themselves.”

“The composition of immigration has also deteriorated. In order to meet employers’ short-term labor needs, we’ve let just about anyone in,” he told elected officials at the National Assembly in Quebec City.

Fortin suggests setting the threshold for permanent immigrants at 50,000 per year.

For temporary immigration, he advocates a significant reduction so that the number reaches 243,000 within four to six years.

–This report by La Presse Canadienne was translated by CityNews