The closure on Sunday of Notre-Dame-des-Neiges cemetery in Montreal since the start of the pandemic has caused incomprehension among many bereaved people who would like to be able to visit the graves of their loved ones.
“I don’t understand what world we live in. A cemetery closed on Sundays, I’ve never heard that, ”says Michael Musacchio. Her daughter died a few months ago at the age of 26. Since then, he and his wife have visited his grave regularly. But the Notre-Dame-des-Neiges cemetery is only open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., and is closed on Sundays.
“I now work six days a week, except Sunday, so I can’t visit my daughter,” he says. Added to this is the fact that the cemetery was closed over the Labor Day long weekend. “I do not accept that, especially since we paid a good amount to bury him,” said the bereaved father.
Eliane Maire, whose son has been resting in the cemetery for a few years, also believes that this restricted schedule is incomprehensible. “I made several calls, and the other cemeteries are all open,” she says. There are people who want to visit after their working day, but it closes at 5 p.m. “
Michael Musacchio has been campaigning for several weeks to change things. Last Sunday, he demonstrated in front of the scene, sign in hand. Next Sunday, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., the 56-year-old will hold a rally at the entrance to the cemetery, on Chemin de la Côte-des-Neiges. “The cemetery managers tell me ‘we’re working on that’ every time I call them out, but nothing changes,” he denounces.
Contradictions
The Notre-Dame-des-Neiges cemetery is managed by the Fabrique de la parish Notre-Dame de Montréal. The organization did not respond to our multiple requests for clarification.
In an exchange of emails that The duty was able to consult, a representative says the cemetery is closed on Sundays to allow disinfection of its offices and facilities, including its 10 mausoleums and chapels, to comply with Public Health requirements. “We must try to avoid any possible spread of this constantly evolving virus,” he writes. We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused you and your family. He also specifies that the cemetery plans to reopen on Sunday “in the near future”.
However, Montreal Public Health told the To have to not having asked or advised the Notre-Dame-des-Neiges cemetery to close on Sundays.
The cemetery employees union, for its part, disputes the veracity of the reasons put forward by the managers. “They made this decision for purely economic reasons: they want to save on wages,” comments Patrick Chartrand, vice-president of the Union of Workers of the Notre-Dame-des-Neiges – CSN Cemetery. “We do not agree with this decision. “
Union members have been without a contract for more than two years, and 23 seasonal positions were cut last March. “It is reflected in the maintenance of the grounds,” notes the representative.
The Fabrique of the Notre-Dame parish of Montreal is facing serious financial difficulties. In a letter sent to its employees in November 2020, it indicated in particular that the Notre-Dame-des-Neiges cemetery had recorded losses totaling nearly $ 103 million between 2008 and 2019, or approximately 8.6 million per year.
In a press release released last June, the factory also says that the cemetery’s expenses exceed its income by around 40% each year, and that nearly 75% of the sums collected go to the remuneration of the staff responsible for the operation, the maintenance and customer service. “All activities need to be reviewed,” and “several difficult decisions” will have to be made, it says.
The union, meanwhile, is demanding access to the cemetery’s financial statements.