Rebuffed in its efforts to shred a backlog of immigration applications, the Legault government Tuesday went into damage control, warning of further delays in matching workers with available jobs as its reform process is stalled.

And after only grudgingly agreeing to comply to Monday’s court injunction saying it cannot shred 18,000 applications, the government said it is not willing to add more bureaucrats to clear the backlog.

Although a group of retired immigration ministry employees said Tuesday in an open letter that the government could clear the backlog in six months for $4 million — versus a cost of $19 million for shredding and returning application fees — a frustrated Premier François Legault predicted it will take a year to process the files using the old system.

And that is not good enough, he said.

“There is a certain urgency to settle the issue of labour shortages,” Legault told reporters headed into daily question period in the legislature. “I think there’s an urgency to use the new system and choose new arrivals based on the needs of companies rather than first come, first served.”

The new system Legault was referring to is known as Arrima, a portal operated by the Immigration Ministry where workers and potential jobs are matched.

The Coalition Avenir Québec government’s initial plan was to cancel the backlog of applicants to the Regular Skilled Workers Program — launched by the former Liberal government — and invite those same individuals to re-apply through the Arrima system.

However, critics say the new system is largely untested. Of the 91,000 persons who have created profiles on Arrima in the last six months, none have been matched with employers. That means they have not been issued a Quebec Selection Certificate.

The government’s change of the immigration rules affects thousands of people — many already living and working in Quebec — and has sparked widespread outrage.

The legislation enacting the plan, Bill 9, is currently before a committee of the legislature.

The CAQ’s immediate problem Tuesday was limiting the political damage sparked by the injunction issued Monday by Superior Court Judge Frédéric Bachand.

The judge sided with the Association québécoise des avocats et avocates en droit de l’immigration, which argued the government must respect current immigration rules until Bill 9 is adopted.

In a blistering ruling, Bachand said the decision to stop processing the 18,000 files would cause “serious and irreparable prejudice” to thousands who have already started building new lives in Quebec.

Simon Jolin-Barrette, the minister of Immigration, Diversity and Inclusiveness, responded by saying Quebec will abide by the ruling and continue to use the old system to process the files.

The association of lawyers estimates between 1,000 and 2,000 files could be processed in a month given that many are nearly completed.

However, Jolin-Barrette refused to say how many of the applications will be processed. He said his ministry is not planning a blitz to clear the files despite the judge’s warning.

“The same resources (in personnel) will be assigned to handling the files as were in use before,” the minister told reporters headed into the committee hearings.

He said the government will proceed with the new bill, which includes the controversial Clause 20 that empowers the government to eliminate the backlog, once it becomes law.

By coincidence, the first group before the committee Tuesday was the very association that won the injunction on the previous day.

Arriving at the legislature, association president Guillaume Cliche-Rivard told reporters he was not there to gloat but wanted written assurances from Jolin-Barrette that the backlog of files would be processed regardless of the timeline of the bill.

“I hope he listens more now,” Cliche-Rivard said in reference to the minister.

The Liberal and Québec solidaire opposition parties made the same pitch.

Later, during the committee hearings, Cliche-Rivard and Jolin-Barrette tangled over another clause in the bill — 29 — that would allow Quebec to make its issuing of a Quebec Selection Certificate conditional to the new arrival living in a specific region.

Ciche-Rivard ripped into the clause, saying when an immigrant is accepted he or she is accepted into Canada overall, not just in one designated city or to do one specific job as the CAQ proposes.

“If he (the minister) wants to change the person’s place of residence, that can’t be done by saying the person could lose their (immigration) status,” Cliche-Rivard said. “It’s not only inhumane and unjust, it’s also against the charter of rights, which assures free movement in Canada.

“The more we put conditions on people the more we slap the brakes on their integration. My problem is there will be a sword of Damocles handing over the heads of people.”

The mood grew even more testy when Jolin-Barrette said this same clause existed before in a Liberal bill but the party dropped it.

Cliche-Rivard fired back the clause existed, but it was never used.

“Never have I seen someone lose their (residency) status because he was not living in Val D’Or or another city.

“I am wondering if we can go with an approach of integration and inclusion, which is the name of your ministry after all, and not the ministry of coercion.”

“I take note of your editorial comment,” the normally unflappable Jolin-Barrette snapped back.

The hearings resume Wednesday.