(Montreal) Professionals from the National Institute of Public Health (INSPQ) began a three-day strike on Monday morning. They demonstrated in Montreal and Quebec, in front of the National Assembly, in this context.
There are 400 professionals: scientific advisers, information officers, computer analysts, in particular, who are members of a union of the Centrale des unions du Québec (CSQ).
They chose to demonstrate in front of the National Assembly to be heard not only by the INSPQ, but also by the ministers and all the deputies, explained in an interview on Monday Étienne Pigeon, president of the Union of Public Health Professionals of the Quebec.
“I invite the decision makers, the people from the opposition parties, to support us, if they want to, to try to advance our cause. It is by no means our intention that the labor dispute continue. But the people, the INSPQ professionals, have had enough. We were good kids during the pandemic. Now is the time to be heard, then to get the recognition to which we are entitled,” said Mr. Pigeon.
The main point in dispute is compensation.
Mr. Pigeon says its members are about 15% behind their peers at the National Institute for Excellence in Health and Social Services (INESSS) who have similar functions.
The collective agreement has expired since March 31, 2020, as was the case for all state employees, before their employment contracts were renewed until March 2023, with the salary increases that will follow. Mr. Pigeon reports that his members “have had none of that” since.
The negotiations are not broken off; other sessions will take place on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, noted Mr. Pigeon.
As this is the health sector, essential services are provided during the strike, so as not to endanger the safety or health of the public. “We are talking about 10 to 15 people who have been identified who have jobs that may be a little more sensitive in this kind of circumstance,” explained Mr. Pigeon.
Their professional colleagues from the Quebec Public Health Laboratory, also members of a CSQ union, have already given themselves a strike mandate. However, they have not yet exercised it, unlike those of the INSPQ.
Treasury Board
Invited to comment, the Treasury Board indicated that “as in the case of other organizations outside the public service”, it “gave the INSPQ a negotiation mandate to allow it to negotiate fair agreements with all its staff,” said Treasury Board Secretariat spokesperson Anne-Hélène Couturier.
The INSPQ succeeded in reaching an agreement in principle with another union, the Alliance of Professional and Technical Personnel in Health and Social Services (APTS), last June. “It is hoped that he will do the same with the other unions that represent his staff, within a reasonable time,” she added.
“Although the Treasury Board Secretariat is not present at the negotiation tables, the progress of the discussions is being followed very closely on our side,” she assured.