The tone is rising between Quebec and the Autonomous Education Federation (FAE), who accuse each other of being inflexible. After eight days of strike, a negotiated agreement seemed, on Monday, out of reach in the short term.
Several hundred unionized FAE teachers gathered in downtown Montreal for a march. The president of this union, Mélanie Hubert, was not supposed to speak to the media, but comments coming from Sonia LeBel’s office a few hours earlier changed the plans.
On Saturday, a union counter-offer was tabled in Quebec and the FAE said the day before that it was “aiming for a settlement”.
However, in the office of the President of the Treasury Board, it is estimated that “the union remains on its positions and has not included anything in its counter-offer concerning flexibility”.
“I invite the government to stop its interventions in the public square, to return to the tables and to have the conversations they want to have,” retorted Mélanie Hubert. She believes that leaving Quebec is “harmful to what happens at the negotiating tables” and that “it will be difficult to reach an agreement soon.”
“I continue to think that an agreement is possible, but it was not the dream weekend that we had imagined and we will have to continue to work,” she added. Negotiations took place on Saturday and Sunday, and continue this Monday.
In Sonia LeBel’s office, it is said that “significant overtures have been made on several priority issues for the union, such as professional autonomy and the composition of the class.”
“The government is ready to go further in exchange for openness on the organization of work,” we add.
The FAE says it has made concessions on the creation of new positions and on professional training, in particular.
“It’s quite special, this negotiation, because every time we are not ready to buy a proposal as is, we are told that we are closed,” declared Mr.me Hubert.
The 66,500 FAE teachers have been on an indefinite general strike since November 23. The president of the FAE believes that an agreement between now and Christmas with Quebec is “not only possible, but necessary”.
PHOTO ALAIN ROBERGE, THE PRESS
The 66,500 FAE teachers have been on an indefinite general strike since November 23.
“It doesn’t do anyone any favors to keep the conflict going,” says M.me Hubert.
The demonstration organized on Monday by the union aims to be feminist and takes place as part of the “12 days of action against violence against women”. Three quarters of FAE members are women.
With Hugo Pilon-Larose