A vicious circle that urgently needs to be broken

The more we give the private sector, the more it demands, and the less there is for the public sector. This must stop, the APTS president argues in a recent letter to Le Devoir.

In the letter, Robert Comeau harshly criticizes the private sector as “a parasite that feeds on and grows from the failures of the public system,” more interested in profits than in the health of Quebecers, as recent events show.

He says we need a massive reinvestment in the public system to “send a clear signal to employees that their occupations and professions have a brighter future.”

Read the letter (in French)
 

Risks that erode health and morale

Psychosocial risks can be hard to define. But health and social services is one of the sectors the most exposed to this type of risk, particularly because of inadequate organization of work.

Undervaluing work, insufficient decision-making autonomy, difficult interpersonal relations, communication problems and… work overload are considered psychosocial risks.

This is what’s covered in the third in a series of 12 factsheets published by the APTS as part of its information campaign on workload.

Consult the factsheet
 

Could this be Lesley Hill's influence?

A few days after appointing Ms. Hill as the head of the DPJ, Minister Carmant insisted on meeting with APTS representatives and Ms. Hill, whom he describes as “very close to the community.”

Problems in rehabilitation centres for young people in difficulty were obviously the focus of the discussion.

Your representatives described what it’s actually like to work in rehab centres and pointed to the APTS’s recommendations to the Laurent Commission on this issue.

We were told that a major initiative is in the works for rehabilitation. The APTS will be asked to take part.

100 words – no more!

You may not have noticed, but 100 is the maximum word count for each item (not including the title) in the Fil@pts, regardless of the topic.

In a world oversaturated with information, we try to get to the point, telling you what you need to know in the fewest possible words. If we got wordy, well… you might lose the thread. (That’s an untranslated pun from the French version! “Fil” means “thread”).

Clarity of thought leads to clarity of expression. That’s the challenge for the Fil@pts team and contributors every issue.

In case you’re counting, this is exactly 100 words.

Results of the last quiz on union news

The average score was 7.3 on 10. Way to go!

The question on medical imaging had the highest score (91%), tied with the reasons for demonstrations at continuous assistance residences (RACs), followed by the question on the reasons for delays in premiums (89%).

There still needs to be a better understanding of the health and social services sector’s share of employment injuries (57%) and the concept of workload (52%). This is why the APTS’s awareness campaigns on these two topics are so important.

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