PQ wants robots to fill labour shortage

Photo: Vincent Yu Archives Associated Press A man works among orange robotic arms at a factory in southern China.

Patrice Bergeron – The Canadian Press

Published at 10:34

• Quebec

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The Parti Québécois (PQ) is banking on robots to fill the labour shortage and replace temporary immigration in the fields and factories.

The Canadian Press obtained the robotization and automation component of the PQ plan to reduce immigration, on the eve of its presentation on Monday.

This plan has been expected for several months and is a response to the Initiative of the Century, a movement that advocates to increase Canada's population to 100 million, through immigration.

The PQ plan proposes to reduce the number of temporary foreign workers established in Quebec from 270,000 to 40,000, according to media reports.

But to fill the vacant positions, the PQ wants to draw inspiration from models such as South Korea, Japan and Germany, all countries hit by a shortage of workers, but which have invested massively in research and robotization.

A PQ government would set up a special fund dedicated to robotization to finance companies that are making this shift.

It would also mandate the Institut national de la recherche scientifique (INRS) to stimulate research and development projects in industrial, manufacturing and agricultural robotics.

Finally, if it comes to power, the PQ would add an automation component to the Investissement Québec Innovation Program, targeting companies with a labour shortage.