Des Collines and Gatineau job fair this November

Tashi Farmilo

A job and continuing education fair will be held in Gatineau for the first time on November 12, when L’Événement Carrières and the Chambre de commerce de Gatineau et des Collines bring employers, training institutions and job seekers together at the Palais des congrès de Gatineau, at 50 Maisonneuve Blvd. The fair runs from 10 am to 5 pm, admission is free and parking is paid.

The Journée de l’emploi et de la formation continue is a partnership between the Montreal-based fair organizer, part of Groupe Contex, and the chamber, which says the event answers needs its members have raised about labour supply, requalification and skills development. The floor is divided into three zones: one for employers hiring now, one for colleges, universities and vocational training centres pitching their programs, and one for employment and integration agencies offering career transition help. Businesses are being asked to reserve a booth through L’Événement Carrières. Registration is not required but is encouraged.

“The Journée de l’emploi et de la formation continue is a concrete opportunity to bring together employers, job seekers and training institutions, to encourage productive meetings and to support the economic vitality of the Outaouais,” Etienne Fredette, the chamber’s executive director, said in a statement translated from French.

Statistics Canada reported that the Ottawa-Gatineau unemployment rate climbed to 7.0 per cent in September from 6.7 per cent in August, with the local economy losing 8,300 jobs that month. The Institut de la statistique du Québec put Outaouais employment at about 211,700 in September on a three-month moving average, down from an annual average of 212,500 in 2025, with the regional jobless rate at 5.9 per cent.

Patrick Rouillard, executive director of L’Événement Carrières, said the partnership is meant to draw more of the region’s employers onto the floor. “The more companies are present, the greater the number of jobs put in front of the population of the Outaouais,” he said. “We are happy to be able to offer the region this way of recruiting face to face, which is very certainly the most effective way to recruit.”