On May 21, ministers Sam Hamad and Yolande James announced an action plan to maximize job stimulation in the city.

Plan Emploi Métropole provides for an investment of $30 million over two years to support job stimulation, increase business productivity, and raise the qualifications of adults aged from 25 to 64 through skills development programs. The Emploi Québec regional office is planning activities to support job seekers, particularly employees affected by industrial reconversion and immigrants. With that in mind, an envelope has been reserved for structuring activities and a joint approach among Montréal stakeholders.
The announcement is very timely, given that in 2008, the CDECs had proposed a project entitled Le bon match (a perfect fit) with the goal of facilitating recruitment of unemployed people by businesses, and building links between these businesses and job seekers. Through this personalized approach, businesses would be able to identify skills and qualifications adapted to vacant positions, in order to create employment offers corresponding to the profile of the local labour force.
That approach would enable businesses to fulfill their needs with respect to hiring and retaining workers, while identifying new gateways for those out of the work force.
In his speech, Mr. Hamad, Minister of Employment and Social Solidarity and Minister of Labour, stated that the city needed new leadership with respect to labour. "Mobilize, train and prosper: three verbs that should be conjugated in the present and future tense to enable the Greater Montréal region to take full advantage of the effects of the economic upturn." That notion fits perfectly into the spirit of our Le bon match project and is why Emploi Québec is asking the Montréal CDECs to rise to the challenge.
To put it plainly, it means that the CDECs are being asked to propose assisted job placement activities to facilitate linkages between businesses and job seekers. The project will start up this fall and will be addressed to businesses and job seekers all over Montréal, in the footsteps of the local initiatives budget. This mobilization of all Montréal actors is a big challenge, but we believe it is worth it.