communitech

Someone is putting up billboards in the U.S. to lure American workers to Canada

There are plenty of good things about Canada: Nanaimo bars, for one. Moose. Rachel McAdams. And also, apparently, our technology industry, if one company's eye-catching billboard campaign in the Silicon Valley is anything to go by.

Communitech, a Kitchener company that champions the Canadian tech industry, has splashed out $100,000 on nine billboards stationed along Highway 101 from San Francisco to Santa Clara.

The billboards ask things like, "What if my visa gets cancelled?" and "What if I lose my job and health insurance?" against the backdrop of the Canadian flag.

And in true Canadian fashion, the company tweeted a version with a good old fashioned "sorry" thrown in.

The campaign is a clever response to the recent suspension of some work visas by President Donald Trump in June, including the H-1B visa, a popular visa among tech workers.

Communitech is hoping to capitalize on the uncertainty that a lot of American tech workers are facing right now by offering them a promising alternative: Canada.

And Communitech isn't the only Canadian tech company to try to lure American workers north of the border following the H-1B visa suspension; Shopify CEO Tobi Lutke also extended a welcoming hand.

"If this affects your plans consider coming to Canada," Lutke wrote on June 23. "Canada is awesome. Give it a try."

Duolingo CEO Luis von Ahn has also said that he will consider moving his billion-dollar Pittsburgh tech company to Canada if strict U.S. immigration policies persist.

Lead photo by

Communitech


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