French is one of Canada’s two official languages. But for companies doing business in Quebec—or serving French-speaking customers nationwide—finding qualified bilingual staff is proving more difficult than ever.
In the Greater Toronto Area, bilingual job postings make up nearly 15 per cent of all vacancies, yet only 8 to 9 per cent of residents report speaking French fluently. In Montreal, demand is even more pronounced, as businesses are expected to offer full services in both official languages. The result: a growing mismatch between the jobs that require French-English fluency and the people available to fill them.
It’s a market imbalance that’s costing employers time and money.
“You can find someone who’s bilingual, or someone who fits your budget, or someone with the right experience—but rarely all three,” says Michael Song, Managing Director at MS2 Bilingual, a recruitment agency based in Toronto.
The gap has created ripple effects in both wages and workplace demographics. According to data from StackCommerce, bilingual workers in Canada earn anywhere from 5 to 20 per cent more than their unilingual peers. In Quebec, unemployment among English-only workers is nearly 11 per cent—compared to 6.9 per cent for French speakers (Authier, 2023).
For small businesses and early-stage startups, keeping up can be especially challenging.
Option 1: Hiring Without Help
Some companies choose to recruit on their own—posting to online job boards, asking for referrals, or adding a short French test to the end of an interview. In many cases, it works. But not always.
Recruiters estimate that about 1 in 5 candidates who claim to be bilingual fall short of professional-level fluency. The discrepancy often doesn’t become obvious until months into the job, after probation has ended and customer interactions are well underway.
Competing against major employers also doesn’t help. National companies offer higher pay, larger signing bonuses, and perceived stability—making it harder for smaller firms to attract the same level of talent.
Option 2: Turning to Bilingual Recruiters
That’s led many employers to work with bilingual recruitment agencies. Most charge a fee of 15 to 20 per cent of the candidate’s annual salary, though some—like MS2—offer fixed-rate models.
While the pricing may be steep, the advantages are clear: better screening tools, access to larger talent pools, and consultants who can properly evaluate candidates in both languages.
Here are some of the most prominent bilingual recruitment firms operating in Ontario:
MS2 Bilingual – Toronto
Website: https://www.ms2bilingual.comBilingual Source – Toronto
Website: https://bilingualsource.comBeyond Bilingual – Toronto
Website: https://www.beyondbilingual.netNevian Bilingual – Markham
Website: https://www.nevian.comBlue Sky Personnel – Mississauga
Website: https://blueskypersonnel.comMT Talent – Greater Toronto Area
Website: https://www.mttalent.caStaffinity – Canada-wide
Website: https://staffinity.caResolve Recruit – Brampton
Website: https://www.resolverecruit.comBilingual One – National
Website: https://www.bilingualone.ca
Option 3: Hiring Offshore Bilingual Staff
As remote work becomes more entrenched, a growing number of Canadian firms are looking beyond the border for bilingual candidates. Countries like Morocco, Tunisia, and Mauritius have large pools of French-English professionals—many with experience in customer service, finance, tech support, and e-commerce.
Offshoring, once associated with cost-cutting in large corporations, is now being adopted by mid-sized firms and even startups.
“You can hire high-performing, fluent French-English staff at 40 to 60 per cent less than domestic rates,” says Song. “In some markets, you’re getting senior-level talent for what you’d pay a junior here.”
Still, experts caution that offshoring isn’t without risk. Ensuring compliance with local employment laws, managing payroll taxes across jurisdictions, and accounting for cultural compatibility can be complex.
MS2 Bilingual offers a managed offshore staffing solution for companies that want to hire internationally while maintaining legal and tax compliance. Other platforms, like Upwork and Fiverr, offer freelance options, but with less oversight:
Upwork: https://www.upwork.com
Fiverr: https://www.fiverr.com
The Bottom Line
Whether hiring locally or abroad, the reality is clear: the bilingual talent shortage in Canada isn’t going away. For companies operating in French-speaking markets, especially Quebec, the ability to source and retain bilingual staff has become a business necessity—not a nice-to-have.
And for Canadian firms navigating a tight labour market, finding the right hiring strategy could be the difference between growth and stagnation.
