As they begin their second day of picketing this Wednesday in near-winter temperatures, union members can warm up to the thought that they have so far popular favor: seven out of ten Quebecers support the workers, shows an SOM poll obtained by The Press. And this, even when their children’s schools are closed.
This “unequivocal” support is evident in the general population, but even more so among those who are directly experiencing the consequences of the strike: parents of children who go to school.
In this case, they support teachers, professionals, special education technicians and those responsible for disabled students, among other employment groups, at 79%.
“Even people who are currently directly affected by the strike because their child is at school are showing strong support,” observes Éric Lacroix, vice-president of the SOM polling house.
Conversely, at 12%, support for the Legault government is “relatively weak” at the moment, says Mr. Lacroix.
It is undeniable, support is overwhelmingly majority for workers at the moment.
Éric Lacroix, vice-president of the SOM polling house
Although it remains strong, this support is a little less marked among those aged 65 and over. “In this age group, we have a few more people who support the government, at 22%, but it is not surprising, they voted mainly for the CAQ. But barely one in five supports the government,” says Éric Lacroix.
The SOM study was carried out online from November 17 to 20, 2023 among 1,679 Quebec adults, including 394 parents of school-age children.
First day of Common Front strike
Tuesday morning, on the first day of the Common Front strike, the population’s support for school staff could be heard in particular in the horns of motorists traveling on Hochelaga Street, where support staff demonstrated in front of the specialized school Irénée-Lussier, in Montreal.
PHOTO PATRICK SANFAÇON, THE PRESS
Protester waving her sign in front of the Irénée-Lussier specialized school, Tuesday
President of the Federation of Public Service Employees (FEESP – CSN), Annie Charland clarified that support staff in the school network are the least well paid “in the entire network”.
“When we take the average annual salary of our support staff, we have an average of $23,400. These are the figures from the Treasury Board. Our people are below the poverty line,” says Mme Charland, who adds that 12% of his union members have used a food bank.
PHOTO PATRICK SANFAÇON, THE PRESS
Strikers making their demands heard in front of the Maisonneuve college
Like 420,000 public sector workers represented by the CSN, the CSQ, the FTQ and the APTS (i.e. the Common Front), Isabelle Fortier said she was demonstrating for better working conditions, but also for “ [ses] youth “.
I take care of everything related to hygiene care for children. We don’t have a big salary and we don’t have great conditions. These days, there is an average of six out of ten: there is a very serious shortage of staff.
Isabelle Fortier, attendant for disabled students at the Irénée-Lussier specialized school
Hopes for an agreement
In front of the Cégep du Vieux Montréal, we played chess and warmed up under heat lamps. Striking parents were accompanied by their children: all public schools in the province are closed.
Physical education teacher, Johanne Matte says she hopes to be “pleasantly surprised” by a conflict that will not last too long. “Otherwise, everyone is demotivated and the worst are the students. We’re going to take them back on those days,” she recalls.
Unions not belonging to the Common Front will soon follow suit. The Autonomous Education Federation begins an indefinite general strike on Thursday, while the Interprofessional Health Federation (FIQ), which includes 80,000 nurses and other healthcare professionals, strikes Thursday and Friday.
No special law in sight
The president of the Treasury Board, Sonia LeBel, is not currently considering tabling a special law to decree the working conditions of public sector employees, while negotiations have reached an impasse.
PHOTO JACQUES BOISSINOT, THE CANADIAN PRESS
The Minister of Education, Bernard Drainville, the President of the Treasury Board, Sonia LeBel, and the Minister of Health, Christian Dubé, at a press conference, Tuesday
She reaffirms her objective of having agreements before the holidays.
[Une loi spéciale], it is not part of the landscape. We need to find an agreement. If we want to improve the network and the daily lives of employees, it has to happen through an agreement.
Sonia LeBel, President of the Treasury Board
According to her, unions and the government must first address the many issues of work organization at the negotiating tables before tackling salary issues.
The solutions that will be put forward must not force the government to add employees, when in several sectors there is a severe labor shortage. “We do not have, in 2023, the personnel necessary to accept reductions in class ratios,” she said as an example.
For the Minister of Education, Bernard Drainville, “salary is not everything”. “I visited 55 schools in a little over a year. The teachers tell me: give us help. This is what we are proposing to them in this negotiation, is to give them help: 4,000 class aids in 15,000 classes, that is an investment of several hundred million per year recurring,” -he said.
The Minister of Health, Christian Dubé, for his part agreed that “the network needs better remuneration in certain cases, but [il] above all needs to challenge himself, to have a better organization of work”.