Welcome in Quebec – Latino workers are establishing themselves more in our regions, to the point that they are changing the portrait of these corners of the country. This summer, Le Journal went to meet them for a special report.
There seems to be a real immigration boom in the Thetford Mines region. If the labor shortage largely explains the phenomenon, the cost of living also plays a major role.
Mayor Marc-Alexandre Brousseau recalls that the Chaudière-Appalaches region has been badly hit by the labor shortage and although the situation has improved, it is still a challenge for many businesses that have to turn abroad.
Marc-Alexandre Brousseau, mayor of Thetford Mines
Photo taken from city website
A real estate broker in Thetford Mines, Juan-Michael Gomez was born in Quebec to a Spanish father. He is very involved with immigrants in the region, especially through training on the financial principles that apply here.
“I know a good number of Latin Americans in Thetford Mines,” says the Spanish-speaking man.
Very affordable
“Along with Shawinigan, Thetford Mines is the city — I’m not talking about villages — where the cost of living is the cheapest in Canada. This means that many immigrants come to settle here with the hope of one day being able to own a house or buy a car,” he chooses.
Juan-Michael Gomez, a real estate broker in Thetford Mines, helps some immigrants from Latin America by serving as an interpreter or providing personal finance training.
Photo by Martin Lavoie
This is the case of Jose Portillo, Salvadoran in origin, who first wanted to launch a business in the Old Capital.
“I liked Quebec but, hey! It’s expensive there! That’s why I came to Thetford Mines,” says the man who went into business by buying the Chez Marie-Anne convenience store on Notre-Dame Street.
Jose Portillo owner of Chez Marie-Anne convenience store in Thetford Mines.
Martin Lavoie
“Here, the average cost of a home was $143,000 in 2022,” explains Mayor Brousseau. The housing vacancy rate was 8.2% five years ago, it is now 0.4%. Companies had to buy blocks to house their employees. There is a lot of construction and renovation of buildings. I was born here and I’ve never seen a block being built in Thetford Mines before.”
He points out that his town of 26,684 residents also attracts because it offers all services, “except for Costco and Madonna shows”.
Balance
Filipinos, Tunisians, French, Mexicans and Colombians make up most of the new arrivals, according to the mayor.
“It has changed the face of the city, but things are generally going well, even if people report things to me sometimes. We must not forget that some people often leave environments where life is very difficult. But now we have an African grocery store, a Filipino store, an Italian one, and a Latin one. It’s very nice,” says Mr. Brousseau.
Notre-Dame Street in Thetford Mines. There is a boom in immigration in the city due to the demand for labour, but also because houses are very affordable.
Photo by Martin Lavoie
“The integration is going well,” says Juan-Michael Gomez. We were lucky that we did not necessarily have any prejudice towards the immigrants, if not even a positive attitude since the Mexicans who came to work in the fields during the summer. It helped a lot with the integration. Here, it is still part of the culture to teach them to work, to send young people into the fields where they rub shoulders with foreign workers,” says Juan-Michael Gomez.