A 49-year-old woman unable to bury her late father because of a labor dispute that has paralyzed the Notre-Dame-des-Neiges cemetery in Montreal, implores that measures be taken so that her family can grieve.
“I can’t sleep well. I wake up at 4 a.m. and I have this anxiety attack at the idea that my father is still not underground, ”says Evanthia Karassavidis on the phone.
His father Logothetis Karassavidis breathed his last breath last month aged 83, after various health issues including a stroke.
His relatives were able to hold a funeral ceremony, but they could not go through the burial stage.
MARIO BEAUREGARD/QMI AGENCY
Evanthia Karassavidis wants grieving families to be spared the labor dispute that is crippling the cemetery.
Clerical workers at the cemetery went on strike last September, and maintenance officials followed suit in January. Negotiations with the Notre-Dame Parish Factory are deadlocked.
Thus, we “welcome only bereaved families who have an appointment for a burial in a mausoleum or for a cremation service, we read on the website of the Notre-Dame-des-Neiges cemetery. No burial in the field is possible at this time.
The premises are also closed to other visitors, it is added.
Embarrassing
In such a context, Logothetis Karassavidis, who had already organized the details of his funeral in 2019, must take the path of a refrigerated room used during such temporary situations.
“He suffered, at the end, just before he died. He was in a lot of pain […]. And I have the impression that he is still suffering,” says his daughter, adding that in Greek Orthodox traditions, the deceased are usually buried soon after their death.
La Lavalloise judges that the consequences of the conflict are “embarrassing” for the largest cemetery in the country.
“As someone who mourns the death of my father, I shouldn’t be stuck [entre les travailleurs et l’employeur]“, laments the mother of the family.
Last resort
Evanthia Karassavidis is possibly not the only person to find himself in such a situation, indicates Patrick Chartrand, president for the Union of workers of the Notre-Dame-des-Neiges cemetery (CSN).
“For us, the strike was really the last resort,” he says. We know that indeed, it will mean that those who will also suffer, like us, are the families.
The Notre-Dame parish factory did not respond to the requests of the Log.
“The strike called by the unions greatly reduces the workforce available to the cemetery. We apologize for the inconvenience,” recounts a telephone greeting from La Fabrique.