Good morning. It is a pleasure to see you for the third time.
This week, the Journal de Montréal published a series of news articles that say that 25,000 manufacturing jobs are currently under threat:
Following the layoffs or shut down of Shermag, Goodyear, Flextronics, Domtar, Tembec and Olymel, the manufacturing sector continues to bleed. Up to 25,000 jobs may be cut during 2007 [...] In 2006, some 30,000 jobs in the manufacturing sector were lost.
The sector is being bled dry. There have been huge layoffs in the furniture, textile and other sectors. At the same time, in my riding of Louiseville, a textile company called Chemise Empire Ltée, received support and was able to innovate. The company provided training to its employees. Today, it has been able to not only keep jobs, but also increase its labour potential.
I would not want to sacrifice our entire manufacturing sector and convert to a knowledge economy exclusively. At the same time, I have the impression that in 10, 15 or 20 years, the Chinese will be dominating the knowledge economy. We, for one, are going to be completely "deprived" of an entire industrial sector.
I would like to hear your comments on the subject. Indeed, the manufacturing sector is facing difficulty in light of Asian competition, the rising Canadian dollar, and the cost of energy. I agree with you on that. The Chinese are competing on the U.S. market, and that also affects our domestic market.
In your opinion, what can we do to maintain a healthy manufacturing sector in Quebec and throughout Canada?