\u201cI knew that if I didn\u2019t speak French, I wouldn\u2019t have a choice to stay here.\u201d<\/p>\n
For Claire Dooley, who moved from Vancouver to Montreal five years ago, the challenge was never deciding whether she wanted to stay in Quebec. It was figuring out how.<\/p>\n
![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/0619-city-young-anglos_303803496.jpg\")
Members of Y4Y gather for a photo prior to their annual general meeting in Montreal on Thursday, June 18, 2026. Many young anglophones in Quebec describe building a future in the province as a balancing act between finding meaningful work, managing rising living costs and navigating language expectations. John Mahoney \/ Montreal Gazette<\/p>\n
Her experience reflects a broader reality facing many young anglophones in the province.<\/p>\n
In 2021, English-speaking Quebecers age 15 to 34 had an unemployment rate of 13.1 per cent, compared with 7.8 per cent among francophone youth, according to Statistics Canada.\u00a0<\/p>\n
This data was cited Tuesday by the groups Provincial Employment Roundtable (PERT) and Youth 4 Youth (Y4Y) Quebec, who presented the preliminary findings of their consultations with more than 200 English-speaking youth across the province.<\/p>\n
The groups reported, despite having higher levels of education on average, English-speaking youth statistically make less than their francophone counterparts. Among 25- to 34-year-olds, they earned a median income of $33,200, compared with $39,200 for francophone peers.<\/p>\n
But the young people behind those numbers were not describing a generation eager to leave Quebec.<\/p>\n
Instead, many described building a future in the province as a balancing act between finding meaningful work, managing rising living costs and navigating language expectations.<\/p>\n
Among the English-speaking youth consulted for the research, language remained a significant source of uncertainty. More than half said their French skills were inadequate for the jobs they wanted in Quebec, while 73 per cent said they needed additional language training.<\/p>\n
For Dooley, improving her French became a practical necessity. She added a French minor to her studies before enrolling in Francization Qu\u00e9bec, the province\u2019s government-funded francization program.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was really helpful,\u201d she told The Gazette. \u201cBut it\u2019s also not accessible for a lot of people.\u201d<\/p>\n
Dooley said the intensive schedule of the full-time program can make it difficult to access for students juggling work and school. The classes she attended through the program ran five days a week, from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.<\/p>\n