(Montreal) Strike votes begin on Monday in the unions of the four organizations that form the common front of the public sector. The meetings will take place until October 13th.
Published at 2:25 p.m.
Lia Lévesque The Canadian Press
The common front, consisting of CSN, CSQ, APTS and FTQ, is asking its 420,000 members for a mandate for an indefinite general strike. However, a possible indefinite strike would be preceded by individual or group strike days.
At the CSN, 33 general meetings must be held in this first week of voting from September 18th to 24th.
At the FTQ, “at least twenty” strike votes are planned in the member unions for the beginning of the week.
There are “a few” planned at CSQ this week in primary, secondary, tertiary and health education. The meetings would mainly take place in the second and third weeks, it said.
On the APTS Health and Social Services page, several meetings are planned for this week in the Integrated Health and Social Services Centers (CISSS) of Lanaudière, Laval, Montérégie-Ouest, Mauricie-Centre-du-Québec and the CIUSSS du Nord-de- l’Île-de-Montréal and du Centre-Ouest-de-l’île-de-Montréal and also virtually for members in Montreal.
APTS President Robert Comeau has no doubts about receiving a solid strike mandate.
“We feel the outrage. We feel the impatience to reach an agreement. “We have the feeling that people are realizing that the government is not listening to their demands, especially on salaries, but also on solving work overloads,” he reports.
“We also tell them that it is difficult at the negotiating table and that there are hardly any constructive discussions. “So I don’t see any other way to end than with a strong strike mandate,” Mr. Comeau said in an interview.
Because APTS members work in health and social care, they are required to provide essential services in the event of a strike. Mr. Comeau assures us that everything in this chapter is connected.
“Yes, it’s over. There are a few things we need to adjust, but nothing major, nothing that would stop us from taking action. It was done well in all companies. Then, of course, we strictly adhere to the agreements with the employer to ensure basic supplies for the population. We will be very, very strict about this,” Mr. Comeau promised.
The pressure is increasing
So the pressure builds on both sides.
For its part, Quebec announced that various bonuses for public sector workers will expire on September 30. Those affected include nurses, specialists and psychologists.
This means thousands of public sector workers will lose earnings while these bonuses are renegotiated.
The collective agreements expired on March 31st. The union demands were submitted in fall 2022 and Quebec submitted its offers in December 2022.
Quebec is offering all public servants a 9% salary increase over five years and a lump sum of $1,000 for the first year of the employment contract. He also wants to spend the equivalent of 2.5% on “government priorities,” meaning his offer represents the equivalent of 13% over five years.
The Common Front, for its part, charges $100 per week or the equivalent of the consumer price index plus 2% for the first year – whichever formula would be most beneficial to the worker – and then the consumer price index plus 3% for the second year, then the CPI plus 4% for the third year.