Members of the Héma-Québec Nurses’ Union are on strike Wednesday at the establishment’s head office and at the collection and mobile collection centers in the greater Montreal area.
The nurses, nursing assistants, counselors and technicians are on strike to denounce the employer’s lack of openness in the negotiations, which are still stalling after around thirty negotiation sessions.
The collective agreement expired on March 31, 2019, while the negotiations officially started in September 2020 have made little progress, despite the appointment of a conciliator since January 20.
According to the union affiliated with the Fédération de la santé du Québec (FSQ-CSQ), the points in dispute mainly concern the issue of salaries for licensed practical nurses, who are significantly behind their colleagues in the public health and social services network. .
“It is obvious that our working conditions must be improved, otherwise it will be more and more difficult to retain and attract nursing personnel to Héma-Québec,” indicated the president of the SPI-CSQ, Nacncy Landry, wishing a change of attitude of the employer.