(Quebec) Talks were disrupted at the largest sectoral negotiating table after Prime Minister François Legault left saying that an agreement in the health sector could not come before January. They are even slowing down: there has been little progress so far and major issues are still in dispute, we learned The Press.
Since the start of negotiations, the government had always said that its objective was to settle the collective agreements by the holidays or the end of the year. However, on Wednesday, François Legault maintained that the talks are “very, very difficult” with the health workers’ unions and that the prospect of an agreement is fading.
“There is almost no openness to give us the flexibility that is absolutely necessary to improve health services. So, from that side, I think it will be better in January,” he said.
PHOTO EDOUARD PLANTE-FRÉCHETTE, LA PRESSE ARCHIVES
François Legault, Premier of Quebec
He made these remarks at the very moment when employer and union representatives were going to meet at the largest sectoral negotiation table, that involving the 120,000 health care workers members of the CSN Health and Social Services Federation ( FSSS-CSN).
A day of talks was lost because there was doubt that the employer representatives had the necessary mandate to negotiate and reach an agreement, sources at the FSSS-CSN explain. The Treasury Board subsequently indicated to the union that Mr. Legault was mainly referring to the situation with the Interprofessional Health Federation (FIQ), which has 80,000 members.
However, it appears that the negotiations between the government and the FSSS-CSN are slowing down. Despite 80 meetings so far, only peripheral issues, without significant financial impact, have been resolved, according to a report from union sources.
This observation is important. Because it is difficult to believe that an agreement could be reached at the central table, where salaries are discussed, without an agreement first being reached at the largest sectoral table in the public sector.
The central table also in slow motion
The negotiations at the central table, which continued on Friday for a fourth consecutive day, are still progressing at a snail’s pace, according to union sources from the Common Front (CSN, FTQ, CSQ and APTS).
The discussions at the largest sectoral table have a significant impact on what happens next. And for the moment, we are witnessing a dialogue of the deaf.
The government blames the union which, according to it, rejects its requests to obtain more “flexibility” in collective agreements. And the union demands regarding bonuses and the organization of working hours are too costly and involve the addition of workers who do not exist in the context of the shortage, it is said behind the scenes.
For its part, the FSSS-CSN accuses the government of remaining stuck to its initial positions. “The government negotiators say that they only have the mandate to discuss the government’s priorities,” not those of the union, believes its president, Réjean Leclerc. “They do not move from their starting position. » Result: “We talk to each other at the table, but there is no negotiation. »
Files that divide
Bonuses
Major issues oppose the parties. The Legault government has been insisting for months that it wants to offer more generous bonuses in the health sector to fill unfavorable shifts (evenings, nights and weekends). According to his offer to the FSSS-CSN, he proposes to increase these premiums by one percentage point. Evening hours would go from 8% to 9%; that of night, from 16% to 17%. For the weekend, it would be 5% instead of 4% – it would possibly be more for certain categories of employment in certain services provided that the work is full-time. It also offers the same increase (one percentage point) for what are called “environmental bonuses”, granted to workers in the intensive care of a hospital, in CHSLDs or in youth centers. The FSSS-CSN is asking that premiums be increased further – by two percentage points for the night premium, for example. This subject is a big money affair.
Staff movement
This is the thorniest issue: Quebec wants to have the power to move personnel much more easily. He wants to have free rein to change healthcare workers, to move them from a CHSLD to the emergency room of a hospital, for example. This risks causing even more instability in working conditions, according to the FSSS-CSN. The government wants to be able to post positions that involve a 12-hour work schedule without an agreement with the union. For the FSSS-CSN, this method would no longer ensure that only volunteers obtain this schedule. She fears that employers often impose a 12-hour schedule when offering positions in the network. The union says it is in favor of arranging different working hours, defined according to the current rules of the agreement. However, he points out that agreements aimed at creating a full-time work schedule of four days a week cannot be deployed at this time due to a problem with the government’s payroll system.
The independent workforce
As we know, the government intends to gradually eliminate the use of independent labor. He thus wants to recognize the seniority of an agency worker who would agree to return to the public network. His hours worked for the private sector would thus be counted in the calculation of seniority. The FSSS-CSN refuses, even if it campaigns for an end to the use of private agencies. According to her, it would be difficult to validate the hours worked on behalf of an agency. And this measure would not change the reasons why these workers left the public sector, such as workload.
The shortage in regions
The government wants to grant a lump sum of $4,000 to an employee who agrees to work full time for at least four months in Outaouais, Abitibi-Témiscamingue or on the North Shore, where the needs are dire. According to the union, this measure is insufficient to attract and retain staff. She wants to improve the current bonus for “regional disparities”, reserved for the moment for certain territories in the Far North, Abitibi-Témiscamingue, the North Shore, and the Îles-de-la-Madeleine. She calls for a bonus for all in “certain regions or localities not targeted by a regional disparity bonus” which also have dire labor needs.
A new “special status”
Another source of conflict: the creation of a new “special status” of employment. Quebec wants to create it to hire retirees or other people who would like to work in the health network, like what happened with the “I contribute” campaign during the pandemic. But according to union sources, “the one and only working condition” which would be attached to this status is remuneration. This status would be “without rights” in their eyes. The employer would have the power to decide the work schedule and terminate employment whenever it wishes.
The students’ issue
The creation of a “student status” poses a problem. Quebec wants to recruit students from health fields of study ready to lend a hand to the network, but it proposes to do so under unacceptable, even discriminatory conditions, according to the union. The student would be paid the equivalent of a certain percentage of the hourly rate at the first level of the job category for which he is being trained and he would not necessarily perform tasks related to this job. For example, a social work student would earn $20 an hour while a social worker earns around $27 at the low end. This student would be called upon to perform tasks associated with another job category, that of social assistance, for which the salary is $24 at the first level.