Quebec public servants refuse to work
The unions and the government never reached an agreement.
Hundreds of thousands of public employees in the province of Quebec have not stopped protesting. They did not go to work from November 21 to 23, but even after that the authorities did not go to the bargaining table. As a result, the unions set new strike dates: from December 8 to 14.
Who is on strike and why?
Four Quebec unions (FTQ, APTS, CSN, CSQ) continue their fight for fair and just working conditions in a coalition called the Common Front. Together, they represent the interests of 420,000 public sector employees in the health, social services and education sectors.
Union representatives say working conditions are unacceptable, union members' labor is undervalued and wages remain low. After fruitless attempts to negotiate with the provincial government, workers went on strike on November 6, then from November 21 to 23, and are now preparing to strike a third time. If the week-long strike fails, the Common Front will call another, but indefinitely.
In its protest, the Common Front joins the Fédération autonome de l'enseignement (Autonomous Federation of Education), the teachers' union that already began an indefinite strike on Nov. 23.
Government response
The strike of the Common Front and the Autonomous Federation of Education is difficult to ignore: schools are closed because of it, hospitals and other state institutions are closed on strike days.
After a three-day strike in late November, progress has been made at the negotiating table. The authorities have started discussing with the unions terms acceptable to them. However, so far the parties have not been able to agree. Quebec Premier Francois Legault said that the province is ready to offer the unions more money, but only if they are willing to make some sacrifices. By that, the provincial leader means a willingness to be more flexible with the work schedules of teachers and health care workers.
While wages remain the main stumbling block in negotiations, which have been ongoing for about a year now, union leaders insist that working conditions must also be improved. And that means that the conditions offered by Legault are not suitable for the strikers. Common Front leaders are confident that this time they must not settle for half-measures:
"Our members clearly felt it on the picket lines during last week's three-day strike. Something is happening in Quebec, and the momentum is there, for our networks, for workers, for services and for the public. It's time to open up the engines, get the mandates down and reach a settlement at all the negotiating tables."
Third party negotiations
In the conflict between the state and civil servants, a third party — opposition parties — is invisibly present. The majority of seats in the provincial parliament belong to the Coalition Avenir Québec. Politicians from other parties are beginning to openly criticize their opponents for their inability to negotiate with hundreds of thousands of strikers.
Quebec's Liberal Party has called on Treasury Board Chair Sonia LeBel to resign, saying she is incapable of getting along with unions.
"Why is she still the head of the Treasury Board? Maybe it's time the premier found a better Treasury Board president," said Liberal MP Marwah Rizqy.
The Parti Québécois believes the situation is critical because it negatively affects the lives of everyone in the province. Party leader Paul St. Pierre Plamondon said that both sides should stop the public debate and come to the negotiating table.
Representatives of the Québec Solidaire party insist that the state must already "table a real offer to the unions."
The longer the conflict between the public sector and the state drags on, the more dissatisfied the province becomes — and the louder the criticism of the ruling party, which has so far been unable to resolve the conflict.
