CPQ: Skilled Worker Selection Program is not working
Posted February 5, 2026 7:27 am.
The measures put in place by the CAQ government to meet labour needs with immigrant workers are not working, according to the Conseil du patronat (CPQ).
The CAQ government is being criticized from all sides after abolishing an accelerated pathway to work in Quebec, the Quebec Experience Program (PEQ), and the CPQ added its voice on Wednesday.
The employers’ organization argues that the Skilled Worker Selection Program (PSTQ), put in place to replace the PEQ, is a failure.
“It’s not working,” said CPQ president Michelle Llambias Meunier at a press conference at the Parliamentary Press Gallery in Quebec City.
“It creates unpredictability; people don’t even know if they will receive an invitation (under the PSTQ) before their (work) permit expires,” she lamented.
Alongside him, CPQ Vice-President Daye Diallo reported that last week, a company told him that if nothing changed, no less than 25 workers would have to leave the production line in the coming weeks.
The CPQ has sent a series of five requests to the four parties in the National Assembly, including the return of the PEQ, which the Minister of Immigration, Jean-François Roberge, has already ruled out.
As for the other four solutions, he calls in particular for strengthening basic skills in reading, writing and arithmetic.
He also calls for improvements to workplace training programs.
The organization also wants more measures to attract and retain experienced workers aged 55 and over. As many as 35,000 people could be mobilized in this way.
Finally, he wants measures to better integrate into the job market people who face obstacles, such as Indigenous people, young people, people with disabilities, people involved in the justice system, etc.
–This report by La Presse Canadienne was translated by CityNews
