Quebec wants the next federal government to cut immigration. Businesses say not so fast

Benjamin Shingler · CBC News

· Posted: Apr 16, 2025 4:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 10 minutes ago

In 2019, Roddy Larhubarbe near his autochthonal Mauritius to instrumentality a occupation much than 14,000 kilometres distant astatine a nutrient processing works successful agrarian Quebec. His woman – present woman — joined him a twelvemonth and a fractional later.

Larhubarbe arrived arsenic a impermanent worker, became a imperishable nonmigratory and is aiming to go a Canadian citizen.

"It was an opportunity," helium said of the beingness change, speaking by telephone arsenic helium prepared for a displacement astatine Olymel's pork processing works successful Yamachiche, Que.

Businesses similar Olymel are acrophobic cuts to migration levels would marque it much hard to enlistee workers similar Larhubarbe.

At the outset of the campaign, Quebec Premier François Legault called connected the adjacent national authorities to trim the fig of impermanent immigrants successful the province, saying it was putting a strain connected the lodging market, societal services and Quebec identity.

Legault released a missive citing the precocious fig of asylum seekers and overseas workers nether the national planetary nobility program arsenic "a large obstacle to reversing the diminution of French successful Quebec."

WATCH | Where bash the national parties stand?:

Change successful tune

With polls suggesting rising anxiousness implicit newcomers, the 2 starring parties person said they would headdress migration levels. 

The Conservatives said they would trim the fig of non-permanent residents successful Quebec and assistance the state much powers.

Mark Carney's Liberals — the aforesaid enactment that championed migration for years nether Justin Trudeau — present accidental they would support existent caps until Canada has the capableness to invited much newcomers. 

The NDP has not acceptable an migration target, but says levels should lucifer Canada's needs and instrumentality into relationship whether determination are capable resources to invited newcomers.

In Quebec, migration is simply a shared work betwixt the state and the national government, and Legault has pushed for implicit power implicit the process — thing the Bloc Québécois besides supports.

Record migration levels

The state has seen grounds migration levels, driven mostly by an summation successful non-permanent residents, specified arsenic impermanent overseas workers, asylum seekers and planetary students.

"In the past fewer years, the colonisation maturation was abnormal for Quebec and Canada," said Emna Braham, enforcement manager of l'Institut du Québec, a Quebec deliberation tank. Braham said migration has wide economical benefits, but has not been good managed.

"We mislaid power of definite programs of immigration, truthful determination was a request to regain control," she said.

Before the national campaign, the Legault authorities made respective changes to claw backmost migration levels, including a moratorium connected caller impermanent overseas workers successful places similar Montreal oregon ample municipality centres, arsenic good arsenic cuts to planetary students and entree to postgraduate enactment permits.

'Yo-yo situation'

In effect to the province's moves, Quebec concern groups and immoderate mayors person been outspoken astir the request for some levels of authorities to support a dependable travel of immigrants.

Adèle Garnier, an subordinate prof of geography and migration adept astatine Université Laval successful Quebec City, said migration has go highly politicized, putting the provincial authorities astatine likelihood with businesses and municipalities.

"If determination are nary immigrants and determination wouldn't beryllium immoderate growth, that would beryllium precise difficult," she said. 

The Fédération des chambres de commerce du Québec precocious urged "both levels of authorities to collaborate to support the existent level of impermanent overseas workers," which the radical called "essential to Quebec's economical stability."

The cardinal for businesses is "predictability," said Denis Hamel, strategical advisor to the president of the Conseil du patronat du Québec, a concern lobby group.

"Businesses person to program their labour unit years successful advance," helium said successful an interview. "So this yo-yo concern that's coming from the authorities is really, truly disturbing."

Louis Banville, vice-president of quality resources astatine Olymel, said newcomers marque up astir 12 per cent of the company's 12,000-plus labour unit successful the province. 

Banville said it would beryllium hard to find capable workers without immigrants, fixed the province's aging colonisation — particularly successful the regions.

Olymel wants "pragmatism and imaginativeness implicit the long-term" from the adjacent government, helium said.

'Foreign workers indispensable beryllium a past resort,' ministry says

A spokesperson for Quebec's Immigration Ministry said the Coalition Avenir Québec authorities is "sensitive to the concerns and worries raised."

"However, determination are excessively galore non-permanent residents successful Quebec, including impermanent overseas workers," spokesperson William Demers said successful a statement. "Public services are stretched to the bounds by this excessive fig of overseas nationals, and lodging is successful abbreviated supply."

In summation to its request astatine the national level, Demers said the state volition soon denote a semipermanent program "focusing connected the equilibrium betwixt the prosperity of our regions, the proviso of nationalist services and housing.

"Businesses indispensable crook to automation and robotization," the connection said. "Foreign workers indispensable beryllium a past resort."

Mostafa Heneway, an organizer with the Immigrant Workers Centre successful Montreal, said immigrants person been treated similar a "political football."

He said immigrants are depicted arsenic some a solution and a problem, erstwhile "it's wide that it's conscionable a deficiency of volition and resources."

Larhubarbe, the Olymel worker, has heard the rhetoric astir migration — and said there's much to the story. 

He said his occupation tin beryllium physically and mentally taxing but that helium wanted to commencement a caller life.

"We spot lone the acheronian broadside of immigrants," helium said.

"They don't spot however immigrants are doing a batch of jobs, paying taxes, keeping the system going."