CEGEP teachers on a crusade against their unions

Representatives of the FNEEQ-CSN and the FEC-CSQ signed a joint letter urging their major organizations to stop obstructing the debate on the protection of French

(Quebec) There is a stir in the union environment about the protection of French. Teachers gathered within the group For the French Cégep accuse the central unions of blocking their attempts to debate in an inter-union way the idea of ​​applying Law 101 to the college network. Stung to the quick, the unions reply that these are false allegations.

In an open letter obtained by The Pressrepresentatives of the group, which is described as a “non-partisan movement of union solidarity for the defense of French”, demand that the CSN and the CSQ “break the strategic and ideological locks against the defenders of Law 101 at the college level” .

“Everything is happening as if the big centrals and their federations wanted to stifle the embers of a debate that they consider to be a hot potato. In the name of good relations with a network of oversized English CEGEPs, we prefer to silence the legitimate aspirations of Francophones concerned about the sustainability of their language and anxious to stop the downgrading of the French network,” they say.

Since the spring of 2021, the professors gathered within this group have been particularly active in changing the majority union position, which did not demand the application of Bill 101 in CEGEP. Last September, they succeeded in obtaining the support of 41 local teachers’ unions. Their national groups, the National Federation of Quebec Teachers (FNEEQ-CSN) and the Federation of College Education (FEC-CSQ), have since followed suit.

According to the grouping, the trade union centers are now actively blocking their representatives when they wish to publish opinion pieces on the subject in trade union newspapers or when they are mandated by their local management offices to present the debate to regional union bodies.

“The watchword seemed to be to remain silent on this issue. In other words, to sit on the lid of the pot,” they say.

“We must decide”

In this new fight which targets the central unions, these teachers militant in favor of law 101 at the cégep benefit from the support of the Mouvement Québec français (MQF). In interview with The Press, its president, Maxime Laporte, had a word for union representatives: “We have to decide. »

“I have no doubt that they faced such obstruction and I support them. It is high time for the trade unions to take up their responsibilities. With the state of the situation of French, we can no longer continue to sweep this debate under the carpet. You have to decide,” he says.

According to Mr. Laporte, “the national authorities [doivent] speak up and stop obstructing because this is a critical issue. THE [centrales syndicales] have to make a choice and tell us clearly where they are staying”.

As for the teachers’ federations, which in recent months have supported the idea of ​​applying Bill 101 to CEGEPs, their representatives assure us that the central unions have never prevented them from debating the question or submitting it to the vote.

The centrals defend themselves

Put in the dock by the group For a French CEGEP, the CSN and the CSQ ensure that they do not stifle any debate.

The president of the CSN, Caroline Senneville, goes a step further: in terms of the defense of French, she affirms: “I have no proof to show to anyone. »

“The CSN was born in 1921 defending not only to be able to work in French, but also to be able to negotiate in French. Before, what existed was called international unions, therefore American unions, ”she recalls. According to M^me Senneville, “there is a great misunderstanding of the way we operate”.

“We had debates that were not easy, for example about asbestos or the just economic transition. They have to be done correctly. […] These are debates that cannot be improvised and must be held with respect for everyone,” she says.

For a debate to start within a power plant, it can take place in a general assembly. On May 15, the CSN will hold its convention. Its leaders recently wrote to all their member unions to remind them that they had until April 2 to submit a proposal that was close to their hearts. None of the proposals received dealt with the application of Bill 101 to CEGEPs.

To date, the Legault government has always ruled out the idea of ​​applying Bill 101 to CEGEPs, which would have the effect of prohibiting Francophones and allophones from studying in a public English-speaking CEGEP. In its reform of the Charter of the French language, Quebec preferred to cap the number of enrollments in the English-language college network. The new Minister of the French Language, Jean-François Roberge, has since promised to submit, next fall, an interdepartmental action plan to put a stop to the decline of French.