(Quebec) Some 300 volunteers from the health network raised their hands to be part of the new “public flying team” which will be dispatched to the North Shore and Abitibi-Témiscamingue, where the end of the use of agencies is causing reductions Services.
The Minister of Health reported on the results on the X network on Tuesday morning. “Already, more than 300 people have expressed interest in being part of the public flying team,” wrote Christian Dubé.
“The final conditions will be known in the coming weeks, after the signing of the collective agreements with the CSN and the FTQ,” he added.
Volunteers will receive a bonus of $100 per day. The minister listed several other “advantageous conditions” on the social network without specifying the details. He notably mentioned an “hourly rate enhanced by various bonuses”, “flexibility in working hours” and “overtime at an attractive rate”.
The Legault government and the unions (CSN and FTQ) announced Thursday the creation of a “public flying team” of nurses and beneficiary attendants who will lend a helping hand first on the North Shore and in Abitibi- Témiscamingue. Ultimately, these workers could be dispatched anywhere in Quebec.
On the North Shore alone, the region is looking for around fifty workers.
The North Shore and Abitibi-Témiscamingue were plunged into a crisis last week as a mammoth new contract came into force to limit the use of agencies.
This megacontract caps the rates offered to agency employees, which has had the effect of dissuading dozens of private sector workers from traveling to remote regions. These maximum rates also apply to overtime.
The creation of this team –– which is somewhat the equivalent of a public labor agency – will rely on a pool of workers to fill needs in the network.
Quebec was able to move forward under provisions negotiated in the new labor contracts of union members which allow voluntary mobility of staff. The FIQ, which is still in negotiations with the Legault government, is not part of the initiative.
This was a proposal from establishments in remote regions following the adoption of its law aimed at abolishing the use of private agencies. Minister Christian Dubé had also expressed his wish to set up such a team in 2021.
François Legault even mentioned this solution in his opening speech in October 2021 when he wanted to clarify his commitments one year before the elections. “We must free ourselves from private agencies. We must build a strong public network, capable of meeting the needs of Quebecers at all times. And we are currently working on a troubleshooting mechanism within the public network,” he said.