PROVINCIAL CONTRACT TALKS
APTS general assemblies: time for you to vote on the possibility of a strike

Here we are. Despite hundreds of mobilization actions organized by the Front commun, despite multiple bargaining sessions and statements to the media denouncing unacceptable offers, the fact is that we are now facing a wall. If we want to make progress at the bargaining table, the government is leaving us with no other option but to obtain a strike mandate.

Between September 18 and October 13, you will be asked to vote democratically, by secret ballot, on a resolution providing your union with a mandate to initiate strike action up to and including an unlimited general strike. The general strike would be preceded by a series of strike actions. You will soon receive full details about your general assembly from your union representative.

For more information until then, see the Info-Négo newsletter sent on September 11.

Government refuses to extend certain premiums

Our demand to maintain certain premiums for the duration of contract talks has been on the table since October 28, 2022, but the parties were still deadlocked on the issue at the most recent bargaining session on September 12. The Front commun is sharply critical of the government’s counterproductive attitude. “This is the umpteenth proof of the government’s arrogance,” said CSN first vice-president Francois Enault, CSQ president Éric Gingras, FTQ president Magali Picard and APTS president Robert Comeau. “These premiums represent thousands of dollars per year for thousands of people working in health, social services, and education. They count on these sums to shop for groceries and pay their bills. So when the government uses the premiums to score points at the bargaining tables, that’s not acceptable.”

For more information, see the joint press release.

Quebecers agree with us!

The findings of a survey on Quebecers’ perception of public-sector contract talks, carried out by SOM, were released by the Front commun this morning. The results are clear: a very significant majority of Quebecers (87%) believe that the government must improve its employees’ working conditions in order to remain competitive in the labour market. They also believe that salaries should, at least, be indexed to the cost of living (86%). Three quarters think that public-sector wages should be equivalent to those in the private sector (77%).

“These results confirm what we notice when we talk to people: Quebecers value their public services, and they know that our working conditions are not satisfactory,” said Front commun representatives. Speaking with one voice, CSN first vice-president François Enault, CSQ president Éric Gingras, FTQ president Magali Picard and APTS president Robert Comeau commented: “Our discussions are becoming more confrontational, and in that context, the survey findings are important for the 420,000 workers we represent. ... The government offers are disconnected, and it seems that a large proportion of Quebecers think the same.”

For more information, see the joint press release.

HEALTH CARE REFORM (PLAN SANTÉ)
Dubé reform: using the private sector can lead to longer waiting lists

We learned last week that a record number of exams and same-day surgeries are going to be transferred to specialized private medical centres in order to reduce wait times in Québec’s public health system. Theoretically, this could reduce waiting lists in the public system, but a number of experiences elsewhere show that this is not very likely. In addition, the scientific literature is practically unanimous on one point: increasing the role of the private sector in health care is likely to reduce the quality of care, and this will have a twofold impact, making waiting lists longer and increasing costs in the long run. In the first of two articles, IRIS (the Institut de recherche et d’informations socioéconomiques) addresses the first issue, i.e., the impact of the private sector on waiting lists in the public health care system. Worth reading!

SOCIO-POLITICAL ACTION
The CAQ is veering out of control

Privatization, reforms in health care and education, giving up on social housing, setbacks on issues of democracy… smashing its way from one reform to the next, Québec’s authoritarian government threatens to weaken both our social safety net and our ability to act democratically. It’s time for us to take action together! The Coalition Main rouge is launching a campaign with the slogan “La CAQ dérape” (“The CAQ is veering out of control”). To know more about the impact of the government’s actions on you and your loved ones, see the Coalition’s short newsletter (in French).