Labor shortages: are robots the answer?

To the question “How do we combat the labor shortage?” Investissement Québec responded by funding “innovative projects” by SMEs.

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Investissement Québec will make a number of investments in Québec companies, in order to enable them to equip new technologies and revive the economy.

“Liggo seeks to accelerate digital transformation, and increase the productivity of small and medium-sized businesses in Quebec,” explained Antoine Broteau, CEO of Liggo, one of the companies that received these grants.

This investment, identified last year, is mandated in several types of loans with variable tenors.

“The investment in APN Liggo is part of the Productivity Innovation Initiative program, which was created in September 2020 to encourage companies to invest in innovative projects,” said Bicha Ngo, Senior Vice President of Special Assignments at Investissement Quebec.

“We want to ensure that Quebec companies are more competitive, and that competitiveness depends on innovation, and therefore robotics, automation, digitalization and artificial intelligence,” Ms. Ngo continued.

Choosing Quebec raises the question of how to manage the labor shortage, because if robots can ease the burden on employers, they are also closing jobs.

“This helps with the burden of labor shortages, automation displaces certain jobs, and makes it possible to fill in jobs that were not filled before,” said Antoine Broteau.