Already strained labor pool and increasingly restrictive language laws in Quebec make it difficult to recruitbilingual talentIt's getting very difficult, employers and experts say, global news.
According to a Statistics Canada report released Wednesday,French and English The percentages are even though the total bilingual population increased nationwide in provinces other than Quebec in 2016 and 2021 in the same five-year period. The percentage of first-time French speakershas also declined in nearly all provinces and territories
Canada's unemployment rate is 4.9% historically There is a relative shortage of bilingual talent due to the low standard of education.
READ MORE: Canada cut jobs for second straight month in July, unemployment rate unchanged
Hiring French and English speakers at Le Germain's two Ottawa hotels is much more difficult for hospitality brands.
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Marie Boissonault, talent and cultural coordinator at the Germain Hotel, said Ottawa's proximity to Quebec was a sign of the company's means getting a steady flow of guests. From neighboring states who expect to receive service in their native language.
That, combined with the company's own French-Canadian origins and foothold in the bilingual nation's capital, puts language demand higher on the list than most employers.
"Being able to offer services in French is very important to us. That's where we started," says Boissonneau.
READ MORE: Québec and most of Canada decline in percentage of French speakers
soon Boarding the , she says, is a challenge these days, but considering that, plus French and English requirements, means Jermaine will have to make concessions.
The company prioritizes bilingualism among its frontline staff, but finding people to fill all these roles is often not possible today.
"(If) we have a good candidate who doesn't speak French but ticks all the other boxes, we'll take it. At some point, there will be someone like this Because it's better, than no one," says Boissonneau.
John Fryshawer, CEO + Edge of Ottawa-based recruitment firm Pivot, says it becomes very difficult to recruit when companies list bilingual credentials in job postings.
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"The more bullet points you add to your list, the more you constantly narrow that pool down to fewer and fewer people. ,” he says.
Flyshower notes that other companies, like Le Germain, see bilingualism changing from "must-have" to "nice-to-have" as soon as they are faced with a list of candidates. He says that he soon realizes that there is
"Most of the time they go down the path of 'hiring someone who speaks English, ideally training them in French.'"
Le Germain said: There are small in-house sessions for new but non-bilingual staff to teach them the basics of having a conversation and to learn common topics that come up in the course of working at the hotel. Bain. (Where is the washroom).
The hotel also pairs English-only staff with at least one French-speaking colleague during the shift to ensure bilingual service is always provided.
Boissonnault said no employees were required to be bilingual, but entry-level staff who spoke both languages were more likely to be offered promotion opportunities. .
Bill 96 adds new hurdles to recruitment in Quebec
In addition to the employment challenges, new provincial French are also being adopted requirements.
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Patrick Huynh, CEO of Montreal-based fintech firm Fiska, said the state government's new language law Bill 96 said about. He makes hiring even harder for a fast-growing company that does most of its business in English.
The bill, which entered into force in June, clarified and set new French language requirements for Quebec businesses and public sector workers.
Communicate with new immigrants in French only within six months of arrival in the state.
Huynh imposes French standards on job listings amid global war for talent in tech sector where his small firm is competing with 'his Google of the world' He said he can't get started.
"We struggled to attract talent to Montreal. In our experience, language is definitely one of the big barriers," he says.
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Read More: Some People in Montreal
Over the past year, Fiska has been able to recruit two candidates from Europe, who are We paid for the relocation costs including expenses. The company took him six months to twelve months to hire his two employees, both of whom he left Fiska within six months.
"The number one factor was the French language requirement," he says. "It will only increase their burden, and they will leave. One in Fiska, two in Montreal." Adding bilingual expectations to the “shrinks the available talent pool,” he says.
Lander said that Bill 96 could be considered "good politics" from the perspective of the government of Quebec, but that such language laws "are not good economics."
He points to the threat from countries such as Belgium where bilingualism in French and English is prevalent, and that these languages take jobs away from Canadian workers who are his point of sale. points out that it is possible Especially in a remote-first world, Belgian call centers can easily take sales jobs from Quebec-based employers, Lander argues.
requires French, but the challenge in recruiting employees with language proficiency is increasingly turning to third-party service providers when work can be outsourced, rather than going through the process of staff onboarding. You will come to rely on it.
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"What I don't see is companies saying they're going out of business because it's hard to hire. “There are always alternatives,” he says.
If Quebec wants to stay competitive and stick with Bill 96, Lander says Quebec should pay more for positions with French fluency.
"I think money speaks better than anything else," he says. "If you hang up a job ad, you're like, 'Hey, here's a job ad. If you speak French, it's worth $10,000 a year. Guess how many people would flip out to understand the other languages they're missing'
Spring calls for delaying Bill 96 and its imminent impact on the sector, but Huynh said that between state governments and industry stakeholders, "consultations are It's not done at all," he said.
Among other policies in Bill 96, companies with 25 or more employees are expected to adopt a "franchise" program. This makes French the main language in the company.
READ MORE: Newcomers Call Quebec Bill 96 Clause Ridiculous, Discourage
Fiska does 95% of the business in English, says Huynh. The company currently has about 10 employees, with plans to grow towards the 25-person wall.
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Quebec tech executives say they are fully bilingual and proud Montrealers, but Bill 96 and others of French people are worried about the future of their companies in the city. -Language adoption hurdles still remain.
Nearby hubs such as Ottawa welcome Fiska more than the city where he started the company, he says.
"This is where I'm from, this is my home, so it would be heartbreaking to have to move somewhere else," he says. "But I also have obligations to the company, employees, and shareholders, and I would certainly consider moving our headquarters elsewhere."
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