A clash between the unions and the Quebec government seems inevitable. The pressure is starting to mount for François Legault, who faces several hundred thousand workers determined to improve their working conditions. A survey published by the union common front seems to show that the Quebec population sides with its members.
The vast majority of Quebecers are of the opinion that the government must improve the working conditions of its staff (87%) to remain competitive in the job market. Those surveyed also think that salaries should at least be indexed to the cost of living (86%). Three-quarters also agree that public sector salaries should be equivalent to those in the private sector (77%).
Everyone is aware that a majority of employees in these sectors of activity are women. Many of us also know that in 2022, the hourly pay gap between men and women will reach $3.25. In a study, the Institute of Statistics of Quebec specified that the average hourly rate for women would reach $29.29 in 2022, and that for men in the same age group, $32.54. Although the gap between women and men is narrowing over time, parity will not be achieved tomorrow.
Former politician Françoise David recently wrote in an open letter to The Press that when the time comes to increase the remuneration of women who work in the health system and in the public system in general, it (always) costs too much.
Judith Huot, the first vice-president of the Federation of Health and Social Services (FSSS), wrote in The duty that she was “tired of living through reforms of [ses] public services without [la] consulted as a worker, as a user and as a citizen… Tired of having less and less access to [ses] services, despite the fact that there have been three reforms [lui] promises the opposite.
The inequitable remuneration of women adds to access to abortion which is declining in several American states, and to the Canadian conservative political fringes which are less and less self-conscious about the idea of speaking openly about restricting access. . Not to mention the sexual and psychological violence that too many women here still suffer. We could also mention inclusive writing, which allows women to be more present in our language, which is rejected out of hand by people who adhere to theories discredited by a number of studies according to which this would complicate reading and writing French.
Moreover, those who manage to climb the hierarchy as best they can know that the “glass ceiling” has not yet broken in many positions, whether in private business, in government or in the political sphere. .
And what about the ageism that many women (and many men, let’s face it) experience when they turn fifty. Meanwhile, certain employers’ organizations want to encourage the government to raise its immigration targets, while tens of thousands of competent people — including these women who live just a stone’s throw from you, but who are struggling to find a job — are waiting. a call from an employer in vain.
I wonder when the breaking point will come.
At what point will our mothers, our friends, our daughters and our sisters tire of fighting against a society that is not even capable of paying them fairly? Will they choose to resign quietly and invest in other sectors of activity, leaving education and health with a labor shortage that is impossible to curb?
The time will come when women will be (really) angry. And when that happens, our entire society will lose.