This text is part of the special Syndicalism booklet
The appointment of Bernard Drainville as head of Education raises moderate hopes.
In trade union circles linked to the education sector, a few names were circulating, as well as rumors about who would replace Jean-François Roberge as minister after the October 3 election. Some already saw Sonia Lebel, since reappointed as President of the Treasury Board. And if everyone agreed that the radio host Bernard Drainville would not be just a simple deputy, his arrival at the Ministry of Education surprised many.
“We didn’t see it coming! confesses Catherine Beauvais-St-Pierre, President of the Alliance of Teachers of Montreal. But once the astonishment dissipated, the trade unionist recognizes that we must both learn lessons from the previous CAQ mandate… and give the runner a chance.
“We have been asking for a change of minister for a long time and, there, we have a new one, sums up, philosophically, the one who taught several years at the primary level in Montreal. Especially since we were constantly told that we had never had a minister who had lasted so long in this position. Sorry, but it’s not a marathon! ” This change had become imperative as the expectations for Jean-François Roberge were high – teacher for 17 years, in addition to signing the essay What if we reinvented the school? — and were often disappointed. The establishment of 4-year-old kindergarten and the end of school boards to replace them with service centers, just a few months before the start of the pandemic in 2020, have left their mark.
Desertion and decay
The former minister had a vision, a very commendable posture, but it can sometimes be stifling. “We saw the same thing with Ministers of Health who arrived with their interpretations, recalls Catherine Beauvais-St-Pierre. They defended them… Without listening to what the others had to say. So the first thing we want with the arrival of Bernard Drainville is that he listens to the teachers. And especially those in Montreal. »
Indeed, there has almost always been a “disconnection” with the Montreal school community, deplores the president of the Alliance. An environment that of course faces issues that can be found almost everywhere in Quebec, but which are much more glaring in the metropolis. Starting with the fierce competition from private schools and the labor shortage. “The problem has persisted for several years, well before the pandemic. It is not normal to see teachers deserting the profession after four years of university and five years of practice. Any company that sees 25% of its staff leave in the first few years does its own soul-searching. »
This is not the only challenge awaiting Minister Drainville. Catherine Beauvais-St-Pierre invites him to see for himself the advanced obsolescence of Montreal schools; an urgent invitation to which Jean-François Roberge turned a deaf ear, as did the Prime Minister. “I met François Legault last spring in a beautiful renovated school, and I told him to come and have a look at a typical Montreal school; those where sinks are condemned and pieces of brick fall on our heads. He replied that it was not necessary, that he knew the situation…”
School, a priority?
However, this has not changed much, according to the president of the Alliance, placing certain hopes in Bernard Drainville, who says he is ready to make several visits to see firsthand the state of affairs and assess the morale of the troops. . Because if the Legault government affirmed in 2018 that education was a priority, renewing this promise last October, Catherine Beauvais-St-Pierre is still looking for the real political will. That, for example, of slowing down the disparities caused by the phenomenon of the three-speed school (private school, public school with special programs and ordinary school) and improving teaching conditions.
“Teachers can’t do their job,” complains the president of the Alliance. That is the real problem of the labor shortage, and it is not by bringing in retirees or teachers who have left the profession that we are going to solve it. With Bernard Drainville, we are ready to discuss the problems, but also the solutions, because we have them. Now is the time to lend a hand… and an ear.
This special content was produced by the Special Publications team of the To have to, pertaining to marketing. The drafting of To have to did not take part.