Despite the difficulties that the strikes have caused to citizens, “the support of the population has been constant,” according to Caroline Senneville, president of the CSN.
“People came to bring us coffee. In Abitibi, an SME even delivered us a large outdoor fireplace.” It is this support from the population that struck Caroline Senneville the most during the last negotiations.
In recent years, unions have been less visible. The last struggle has in fact “put unionism back to the forefront and in a positive way”, notes in an interview with The Press Mme Senneville.
“People knew what we were fighting for. We were fighting for public services. »
And this time, in his opinion, the government was not able to convince the population that “what was given to the public sector was taken away from other people”.
Nevertheless, the strikes were hard felt. Schools were closed, surgeries and treatments were canceled. How to avoid it next time? “It will be necessary for the government not to take public services for granted and not to take for granted those who provide them. It’s still managed as if we had a three-foot-long recall list. »
PHOTO JOSIE DESMARAIS, LA PRESSE ARCHIVES
Common Front demonstration, September 23, 2023
Unlike other union members, those of the CSN had access to a strike fund (the professional defense fund made up of regular contributions from members).
But as for the other strikers, the next salary increases will not be modulated according to place of residence, even if the cost of living varies enormously from one region to another. Making such a differentiation “was not part of our requests this time”, but perhaps next time, indicates Mme Senneville, saying she is aware that the housing crisis is changing the situation a lot.
CSN members will vote on the agreement in principle by February 20. Mme Senneville says that it will be up to each general assembly to decide in a sovereign manner, but that the draft regulations presented to the union executives and the federations have been favorably received so far.
The next battles
Over the next year, the CSN promises to fight against the centralization it fears following the promulgation of major bills in health and education.
“Our members are more than doubtful about these reforms,” notes Mme Senneville.
She adds that “the Minister of Health [Christian Dubé] said that he was giving himself time to implement structures and he said that his bill could be improved. We take him at his word, we want to see what angles can be rounded.”
According to Radio-Canada, the manager who will be recruited to manage the new Santé Québec agency will receive a salary of $543,000, in addition to performance incentives.
“Many people who work very hard in public administration and who care about the State do not earn that,” comments Mme Senneville.
In general, she says she is concerned about the increased recourse to the private sector and the importation of the practices that take place there, while regretting the bureaucracy which forces workers to fill out ever more forms, with the consequence “that they feel less of the impact of their work.”
Mme Senneville evokes here a chronicle of The Press having revealed the difficulty for patients in CHSLDs to be even well hydrated. She also recalls the case of “this nurse who was suspended for three days for eating toast” during her shift.
And afterwards, she notes, a grievance must be heard, at great expense and with very long delays.
Don’t the unions also have something to do with this bureaucracy?
“The number of minutes we spend with a patient is not agreed,” replies M.me Senneville, emphasizing that it is the administrators who determine it.
The president of the CSN finally observes that “negotiation should be the time to resolve” these kinds of things which cause the system to run amok. “But for several months, we were told [par le gouvernement] : “It’s not a priority, we don’t want to talk about it. »