By François Bellemare
There are lots of jobs in Inuit communities. And Inuit leaders deplore the small percentage of their own who occupy these jobs. They understand that they must intensify their efforts to reverse the trend. Mary Simon, Canada’s Governor General, argues that “Nunavik must train more professionals in every domain.”
Even though businesses and other organizations prioritize local hiring, only 50% of all posts in Quebec’s Far North are occupied by Inuits. This isn’t out of ill-will by employers, who are often Inuit themselves.
Indeed, the question of local employment was written into 1975’s James Bay Agreement.
The Challenge of Employability
Generations of retired employees often occupied jobs all their working lives without professional training. But these days, developments in the service sector requires an increasingly qualified workforce.
The statistical survey Nunavik in Figures 2020 indicates that 65% of all adults don’t have a high school diploma. It was to rise to this challenge that in 2017, the Kativik Regional Government founded the Pijunnaqunga program – which in English means “I can do it.” The program’s team leader Guillaume Pageau-Lefebvre summarizes their goals:
“Our mission is to offer Inuits the possibility of occupying lasting local jobs, with a level of professional responsibility. We’re addressing two distinct client groups: on the one hand, those looking for a job who want to work in their community, but who for all sorts of reasons can’t get a permanent job. And on the other hand, those already employed by Inuit organizations, but who want to raise their competency levels and tackle more responsibility.”
The Kativik School Board is responsible for education up until the end of high school, as well as for technical training. The Pijunnaqunga program is oriented towards office jobs.
Recruiting at the Grocery Store
How do they recruit? There are the employers themselves, who can suggest to their personnel that they improve their skills. Social media and community radio attract a lot of candidates. But often, they need a more grounded approach to recruiting.
“Everyone goes to the grocery co-op regularly,” Guillaume notes. “We set up an information table there two to four days before each training period. This direct approach, by Inuktitut speakers, is a privileged moment to convince average people that these job opportunities are accessible to them.”
For some, filling out the enrollment form requires considerable effort. This is followed by a telephone interview, then a second in-person interview – as much to clarify the different steps in the process as well as to motivate. Then comes the training itself.
Back to a Routine
“One at a time, in each of the 14 Inuit villages, we get the recruits together for two weeks of training,” Guillaume says. “The first week deals with the use of a computer. With PowerPoint presentations or videos shot at places of work, we try to illustrate the reality of each workplace, and demystify the work to be done.”
The second week is dedicated to general principles about workplace health and time management – skills that permit one not only to obtain a job, but to keep it.
For those who have spent a long time off the job market, the task is tough, Guillaume explains. “They have to often return to a daily routine, maintain regular sleep and meal times, plan the care of children or elderly parents, etc. Sometimes it’s a great personal challenge.”
Work as a journalist? Or in municipal government?
Among the Nunavik businesses and organizations contacted, media outlets offer opportunities for those fluent in Inuktitut. These include a community radio station in each village; regional radio, which also broadcasts community television; a weekly bilingual Inuktitut/English publication; and CBC radio. The training includes a short presentation, to demystify the role of journalism.
The idea is to convey the message that, like other regional organizations, these media offer internships to those interested… because they need new employees!
The promotion of Inuit personnel involves the development of professional skills. Even jobs once considered strictly physical (national park wardens, hotel concierges) now require bureaucratic skills: handling reservation calendars, filling out reports, ordering products, etc.
Retaining Interns
After the two week training period, participants can get an internship of anywhere from two to three months at one of the regional organizations looking to hire local people. And after a few months working with a mentor, a participant might land a regular position. The program also runs a placement service.
Annual evaluations have shown that several aspects of the program now work fairly well: the approach to recruiting; the training sessions; the educational material; and the local internships. “One problem remains the retention of people whose internships take place in villages different from their own.” Guillaume concedes. “This past year, none of them achieved the desired result, which obviously reduces job prospects.”
This might be explained by the high number of internships in the major regional centre of Kuujjuaq, far from participants’ home villages. It’s a dilemma that several Inuit leaders admit exists: should they support a quick development of services, leading to rapid growth in Kuujjuaq? Or should they favor more patient growth, adding more jobs in each little village?
Since charity begins at home, there is also the future goal of increasing the proportion of Inuits employed… Even within the modest Pijunnaqunga team, where they currently constitute one-half of the staff.
Results Evaluated
“Out of 80 people who did our training course this year, 17 obtained an internship, and 11 were employed at the end of their internship » Guillaume Pageau-Lefebvre says. « That’s about a 15% success rate. That may seem a modest ratio; but we must understand that in the context of socio-professional integration, Nunavik is far behind the Quebec average. In a lot of cases, candidates must take the training course two or three times in order to succeed.”
He adds: “For we who are involved in social intervention, every little success is an accomplishment. I’m thinking about a participant with no prior skills, who landed an internship as an accountant. She is now fully employed. It shows that the academic road isn’t for everyone, that there are fallback solutions, so that in their own employment journey, everyone can tell themselves: I can do it.”
Top photo: Drinkable water distribution service, Tasiujaq. Photo by François Bellemare
As seen in Reflet de Société, No. 33-3, janvier-février (January-February) 2025, pages 24-25.
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