More immigrants needed - Regions unite to attract foreign workers

The regional county municipalities (RCMs) of the region come together under a single banner, Greater Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean, to consolidate their immigration efforts and attract more foreign workers to businesses. The Quebec government has invested $1.2 million in this new recruitment strategy.

The goal is also to increase the reach of their recruiting efforts. When we went out internationally, we always had the two small kiosks Saguenay and Lac-Saint-Jean and we said to ourselves that it made no sense, being a separate region, explains the prefect of the MRC du Domaine-du -Roy, Yanick Baillargeon. Because there, we are no longer divided. If we want to survive, we absolutely have to work together.

Remember that the City of Saguenay is considered to be an MRC in this type of grouping.

Attract French speakers
This announcement is part of the Quebec government's desire to mainly welcome immigrants who speak French. It therefore aims to charm Francophones already established in the country or who live abroad, as indicated by the minister responsible for the region, Andrée Laforest.

We really want to welcome more immigrants, we also want to francize our immigrants, she says. There are several measures that are given in municipal organizations for francization. Today, it's like a big signal that we're sending out because yes, Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean is big, but we're also working together.

In the context of a labor shortage, foreign workers are the solution for many employers. 360 businesses in Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean have welcomed more than 2,500 foreign workers in the past two years. 10,000 [new] citizens in 10 years, that's what we need to maintain ourselves, it's not even a need to expand, it's a need for ambition, says the mayor of Saguenay, Julie From the oven.

For Yanick Baillargeon, we also need strategies to ensure that foreign workers come to the regions and do not stay in major centres. It is certain that the criteria will have to be more facilitating for the regions, he adds. In recent years, it went to major centers. We have to find solutions to attract immigrants to the regions and keep them.

The new campaign is being rolled out via a website, digital ads and an increased social media presence. The first test of Greater Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean will be this week at the Montreal Immigration Fair.

Original article: Radio-Canada