Thank you for your question.
Often, we make a distinction between retailers and manufacturers, whereas in fact, they co-exist. If there are no workers in the manufacturing sector earning $60,000 to $70,000 per year, there are no new businesses; there are even retailers who are going out of business. It is important to have a healthy society where there are a lot of jobs, a lot of good jobs. There is no doubt about that.
The Retail Council of Canada and our partner in Quebec, the Retail Council of Quebec are sending the following message: governments are separating the sectors, whereas they should be considered to be joined at the hip. One cannot live without the other. Many of our retailers across the country are asking us if we did not see this coming, because they did, and they are also asking us if we have any solutions.
The sector is not in a state of shock; it seems that everyone is in a state of shock. Nevertheless, most people were expecting this. It is very sad that there is no plan B.
We must work together to ensure that we keep these jobs in the community. I worry about the fact that it may be too late, but as the representative of retailers, I remain optimistic nevertheless.