The return to work of legal aid lawyers in Laval and Montreal could prove brief, as the union representing them announced on Wednesday that it had given itself a new 10-day strike mandate in order to pressure on the employer for better working conditions.
On December 23, the Union of Legal Aid Lawyers of Montreal and Laval, affiliated with the CSN, began a strike by its members which lasted until December 27. “It was a historic strike. It was the first time that legal aid lawyers had gone on strike for five consecutive days, especially during the holiday season,” explains the Homework union president, lawyer Justine Lambert-Boulianne.
Returning to work on Wednesday, legal aid lawyers took part in a general meeting of their union, where they voted 97% in favor of a new 10-day strike mandate. The lawyers will however be on duty on Thursday, as they have not yet decided when they will go on strike again.
They also have several factors to take into account before starting a new strike, explains Justine Lambert-Boulianne. Since the union does not have a “strike fund”, legal aid lawyers must bear the financial impact of these days of walkouts out of their own pockets. Their clients could also be hard hit if a strike occurs after the holiday season, a period during which the legal system is idling.
“We don’t necessarily have a complete portrait of the impacts that it will have in Quebec,” says Me Lambert-Boulianne. Legal aid lawyers, she recalls, deal with files related to criminal law as well as civil law, immigration and housing rights, among others.
Already, during the strike from December 23 to 27, lawyers in the private sector “were inundated with calls”, while the executives of the Community Legal Center of Montreal and Laval allegedly refused “to provide a minimum service” to compensate the impacts of this walkout, says Justine Lambert-Boulianne.
“We were quite sad to see that and the priority of legal aid lawyers is our clients, so we put that in the balance to know when we are going to put in place the next means of pressure”, affirms the lawyer, that “the ball is in the employer’s court”.
Working conditions
Through these means of pressure, the legal aid lawyers wish in particular to denounce the fact that they were offered by the State a salary increase of 6% over three years, while the Crown prosecutors obtained in 2020 salary increases totaling 10% in four years. Legal aid lawyers are demanding pay parity with their Crown colleagues.
The union also alleges that the Community Legal Center of Montreal and Laval would have threatened legal aid lawyers with disciplinary sanctions if they did not make themselves available to work during the holiday season. A way of doing things that goes against the collective agreement concluded with the employer, which has expired since December 31, 2019.
This union dispute comes at a time when legal aid lawyers are faced with a growing number of requests from low-income Quebecers. In terms of domestic violence, in particular, “the number of files has increased enormously”, notes Justine Lambert-Boulianne. However, “if we want to continue to recruit people who have the passion and talent [pour travailler comme avocats à l’aide juridique]the conditions must follow, ”she adds.