(Montreal) As soon as their holiday strike ended, legal aid lawyers in Montreal and Laval voted almost unanimously in favor of a new strike mandate, which could be used “at any time” .
The Union of Legal Aid Lawyers of Montreal and Laval, affiliated with the CSN, announced that 97% of its members present at the general assembly voted in favor of ten additional strike days.
These lawyers have just walked off the job for five days, from December 23 to 27, to denounce the position of the Government of Quebec, which refuses to renew the terms ensuring pay parity between legal aid lawyers and their Crown colleagues, according to the syndicate.
In a statement, the union also deplored the way services were organized during the strike in recent days.
“We were shocked to learn that no member of the management of the Montreal and Laval Community Legal Center (CCJM) volunteered to respond to telephone and video call on-call services, while the Center was responsible across Quebec during the holiday break. This situation has led to major disruptions in services,” said the president of the union, Ms.e Justine Lambert-Boulianne.
According to the union, several lawyers were “threatened by the CCJM with disciplinary sanctions” if they did not show themselves to be available according to the holiday schedules already established.
The main point in dispute in the negotiations is the principle of pay equity with Crown prosecutors. Legal aid lawyers want the same wage increases as their colleagues, but the government would stick to its offer with lower increases, from the union’s point of view.
Over the past few months, members of the legal aid lawyers’ unions affiliated with the CSN have walked off the job a few times. Their collective agreement expired on December 31, 2019.
“Our justice system is cracking everywhere, in large part due to the poor working conditions of its main stakeholders. By denying pay equity to legal aid lawyers, the government is directly calling into question the principle of fairness between the prosecution and the defense within the public sector itself — while the management of the CCJM and the Commission des legal services, unable to ensure respect for the basic rights of citizens for five days, are threatening their lawyers with disciplinary sanctions,” added Ms.e Lambert-Boulianne.
The Union of Legal Aid Lawyers of Montreal and Laval-CSN represents approximately 125 members.