The president of the Autonomous Education Federation (FAE), Mélanie Hubert, addressed its members in a video on Facebook at around 9 p.m. on Friday evening to inform them that the work is continuing in the hope of reaching an agreement with the government for the Achieve renewal of collective agreements.
Don't worry, negotiations will continue this weekend. It is the FAE's priority to reach a satisfactory agreement, said Ms Hubert on the sidelines of a meeting between the association's executive committee and the negotiating committee.
The 66,000 primary and secondary school teachers who are members of the FAE have been on an indefinite general strike since November 23 and have no strike fund.
In recent days there has been great confusion about the status of the situation. Prime Minister François Legault said on Wednesday he was confident children could go back to school on Monday, something the FAE president said was unrealistic.
Mélanie Hubert indicated on Friday that things are not progressing at the desired pace, but negotiations are continuing.
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The President of the Autonomous Education Federation (FAE), Mélanie Hubert
Photo: The Canadian Press / Jacques Boissinot
We will be available throughout the weekend to keep things moving forward and the management side has also assured us of availability for the next two days. What still needs to be done is to carry out the work individually and arrange meetings to talk again, she made clear.
With this in mind, I wish you a nice weekend. We'll let the negotiations take their course. “Try to get some rest and we’ll see you at the picket lines on Monday,” Ms. Hubert added in her address to members.
Elsewhere in the public sector
The all-union Common Front will also report next week on the current status of negotiations with the Quebec government, what happens next for its members and whether it will carry out its mandate of an indefinite general strike.
The 420,000 workers in the education and health networks represented by the joint front consisting of CSN, CSQ, FTQ and APTS completed their third series of strikes on Thursday.
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The Joint Front conducted a third attack sequence from December 8 to 14.
Photo: Radio-Canada / Tifa Bourjouane
No return to the FIQ counterproposal
For its part, the Interprofessional Health Federation (FIQ), which represents 80,000 nurses, practical nurses and other health professionals, hoped on Thursday for a response from the government to a proposal on working conditions presented the previous day.
After three strikes by its members, the FIQ will also report on the current status of the negotiations next week.
Both Prime Minister François Legault and Finance Minister Sonia LeBel described the negotiations with the FIQ as very difficult.
Prime Minister Legault even hinted that we shouldn't expect a result before Christmas. “I think it will be better in January,” he said earlier this week.