After the major march of Common Front workers which took place on Saturday in Montreal, members of the Interprofessional Health Union of Lanaudière (FIQ-SIL) in turn chose to exert pressure on the government by going demonstrate Sunday and Monday in front of the constituency office of Prime Minister François Legault, in L’Assomption.
They intend to spend all day Sunday in front of Mr. Legault’s constituency office to make themselves heard. The most courageous will spend the whole night there, in order to be ready for the march through the streets of the municipality which will take place Monday morning.
For the president of the FIQ-SIL, Marie-Chantal Bédard, this event, which will last 24 hours, is a reminder of the conditions in which nurses work on a daily basis.
It is significant to tell the government, to tell the population, that you need healthcare professionals, and that while you sleep, while you celebrate with your families, we are there 24 hours a day, 7 days a day. 7, and we want to continue to be there to provide care to the population.
the president of the FIQ-SIL, Marie-Chantal Bédard
The unions promise a “warm autumn” in the coming weeks. According to the FIQ, “the progress of the negotiations does not meet the expectations of the activists”. For its part, the government insists that unions must show flexibility in their demands.
In Lanaudière, Mme Bédard fears we will see an exodus of health care workers if the next collective agreement does not offer better working conditions. According to the 2021-2022 report on the nursing workforce from the Order of Nurses of Quebec, Lanaudière already finds itself in penultimate rank among the health regions of the province for the number of direct care nurses per 100,000 inhabitants.
“Our big fear in this is that people will leave the health network because of the government’s current offers, because, yes, there are salary offers, but there is also what “We are offered working conditions,” notes Mme Bedard.
“In Lanaudière, we already have trouble attracting people, so we don’t want the ones we have to leave. »
Not just “guardian angels”
The expression was very popular during the pandemic, but on Sunday and Monday, the workers who demonstrated in front of Mr. Legault’s office wanted to move away from the qualifier “guardian angels”. Rather, they ask to be recognized for what they are: “highly qualified” professionals.
“It seems like the government is trying to tell the population that we are all guardian angels, that no matter what we do, a healthcare professional is a healthcare professional. Well listen, that’s not true. We are ultra-specialized people in what we do,” says M.me Bedard.
It thus puts a damper on the government’s desire to increase the mobility of workers in the network.
“In the end, that’s not how it works,” says Mme Bedard. We are ultra-specialized healthcare professionals, each sector in which we work, regardless of the type of job, comes with a specialty. »
The time of guardian angels is over. We want to provide good care to the population, as well as safe, quality care.
the president of the FIQ-SIL, Marie-Chantal Bédard
Tense negotiations
On Saturday, thousands of people marched through the streets of Montreal during the demonstration organized by the public sector inter-union common front, which brings together the CSQ, the FTQ, the APTS and the CSN.
The FIQ is not part of this common front, but negotiates in parallel with the government.
According to its most recent update on the talks, the context also seems tense: “Currently, the progress of the negotiations does not meet the expectations of activists, who want the government to be more receptive to the needs of members and to act in accordance with Consequently, to improve the working conditions of healthcare professionals and recognize their contribution at its fair value. »
“It is the future of the health network that is currently being played out,” adds Mme Bedard.
Saturday, before the common front march, the President of the Treasury Board, Sonia LeBel, said she was ready to continue discussions, but felt that “we absolutely must organize the work in our schools and our hospitals in a more efficient way.”
“What is the key to getting there? Convince unions to give us more flexibility in collective agreements. It’s essential that they get their way on this,” insisted M.me LeBel.