(Montreal) A 95% share of Common Front public sector union members voted in favor of a strike mandate to be exercised in due course.
Posted at 6:21 am
Lia Lévesque The Canadian Press
The common front represents 420,000 workers in the health, social and education sectors, members of the CSN, CSQ, APTS and FTQ unions.
The mandate issued ultimately calls for an indefinite strike, but would be preceded by strike “sequences,” probably single or grouped strike days.
“It’s historic. From the beginning it was said that the movement was historic – the largest common front, the most numerous, with a mandate that had not been requested for 40 years. “I have to tell you that we expected good support, but there, really there… What the members have told us are just two things: they are fed up, they are disgusted and they want to improve their working conditions,” exclaimed Éric from Gingras, President of the CSQ, the most representative center in the education sector, in an interview.
“I think if the finance minister needed another signal from us, from her staff, then they have it now. At 95% that’s crazy! This is outrageous,” shouted FTQ President Magali Picard.
“Very happy! We already had the feeling during this negotiation that the members were behind us. They asked about the negotiations; they were outraged. But if you look at it that way, with such a high percentage it still gives us a clear one “Boost for the support that our members give us because we represent their voice in these negotiations. This gives us a good balance of power at the negotiating table,” commented Robert Comeau, President of the Alliance of Professional and Technical Personnel in Health and Social Services (APTS) .
“A strike mandate is in itself a means of pressure and I hope 95% that the government takes into account the level of the mandate received from the union members,” emphasized the vice-president of the CSN, François Énault.
He highlights the high participation rate at union meetings. “For my organization, the CSN, it varies from sector to sector, but it is definitely the best participation rate since the last two rounds of negotiations.” Ms Picard from the FTQ also mentions that participation rates are “much higher than in the past”.
When will there be a first day of strike if the parties actually get there? “With all the delays we are having, I would say that it is clear that it should no longer be in November,” explained Mr. Énault.
If a strike actually occurs, essential services in health and social care are planned, but not in education.
The negotiations
Despite this strike vote, negotiations with the Ministry of Finance and the affected ministries continue. But Mr. Comeau reports that for months “we’ve just been talking about the government’s priorities,” without addressing those of the unions.
Quebec offers a 9% increase over five years and a flat rate of $1,000 for the first year. To this he adds an amount of 2.5% reserved for “government priorities”, meaning that his offer represents a value of 13% over five years.
For its part, the common front is calling for a three-year contract, either $100 per week or the Consumer Price Index plus 2% for the first year – whichever formula is most beneficial to workers – then CPI plus 3% for the first year in the second year and CPI plus 4% in the third year.