After shattering a glass ceiling at the very beginning of the year by becoming the first woman at the head of the Quebec Federation of Workers (FTQ), Magali Picard found herself at the heart of the action of the union struggles which led to strikes and tense negotiations with the Legault government. A look back at a significant year for this union leader, who has established herself in the media landscape.
Last January, Mme Picard made history by becoming the first woman and the first Indigenous person to chair the FTQ, a traditionally male union center. “This allowed us to take stock of how society has evolved,” notes Lorraine Pagé. The latter was herself, in 1988, the first woman to become president of the Centrale des syndicats du Québec.
It was after accomplishing this feat that Magali Picard, already well known in the union community, became a public figure in the eyes of a larger section of the Quebec population, particularly for her positions in favor of an increase in wages. minimum and a reform of the voting system. “She is a passionate woman and she is also a direct woman,” notes political analyst and lecturer in the Department of Political Science at UQAM André Lamoureux. So many qualities that made her endearable to the Quebec population, he believes.
Union negotiations
Thanks to her “charisma” and her talents as a communicator, Magali Picard then established herself in the media as one of the main spokespersons for the Inter-Union Common Front which began a strike movement at the beginning of November, notes Thomas Collombat, associate professor of political science at the University of Quebec in Outaouais.
“She really has an ability to motivate a group, to maintain interest and to send mobilizing messages which are remarkable”, despite the notable consequences of the strikes which have taken place in recent weeks and which have turned the lives of many people upside down. Quebecers, notes the expert.
The only downside to an almost flawless year for Magali Picard: her shortened trip to Dubai at the end of November. The union leader was to take part in the COP28 environmental conference for a week. However, she instead returned the next day to Montreal, after her departure, during a period of intense negotiations with the Quebec government, sparked a lively but brief controversy.
“She fought to say that the minimum wage is too low and she went to Dubai. I found it very contradictory,” says André Lamoureux. If the latter describes this trip as a “big mistake”, Lorraine Pagé describes this controversy rather as a “storm in a teacup”. “We must not forget that climate change” will soon “be at the heart of the challenges of our union organizations,” notes M.me Pagé, according to whom this trip was therefore justified.
The finalist: Dominique Savoie