The day of strike in the civil service slowed down the courts considerably this morning with closed rooms and judges unable to move cases forward, since the detainees had not been brought to court.
“There is the strike by civil servants, but also pressure tactics by the detention centers…just like our special constables [les forces de l’ordre du palais] “, explained a judge who was to hear a case of human trafficking at the Montreal courthouse.
However, if the accused was to be present for his trial, he had not been brought to the building on rue Notre-Dame. It took an order from the judge and a wait of more than two hours before the hearing could begin.
In the room just opposite, another judge could not advance the files, since the correctional services had not even opened the videoconferencing system. Lawyers have however obtained authorization to postpone files without the presence of their clients “given the circumstances”.
Delays everywhere
“Due to the strike, the coordination office is closed today, it will not be possible [pour les avocats] to obtain a trial date for an accused”, added another judge a floor higher.
And that’s not counting a room dedicated to release investigations which was delayed before starting work, other trial rooms usually open every day which were closed today, while lawyers complained about be unable to reach their detained clients.
“I don’t know how we’re going to do it, it’s difficult today,” a lawyer told the Journal, on condition of anonymity.
This slowdown, which we have seen in Montreal, Longueuil and Saint-Jérôme, among others, has caused headaches for those working in the justice system. And this is only the first day of strike on 10 others, voted by the members of the Syndicat de la fonction publique du Québec. The latter denounces the lack of staff, as well as the more than modest salaries.
The discontent is all the greater since the judges recently obtained salary increases ranging from 22% to 50% over four years, while the government would only give crumbs to civil servants.
Labor shortage
“The government refuses to value public service jobs,” lamented union president Christian Daigle in a statement.
This is because the salaries of clerks and bailiffs are far from competitive, so that employees regularly leave their jobs to find another similar one, but much better paid, for example at the municipal or federal level. Over the past year, dozens have gone elsewhere and, from time to time, the lack of staff has delayed the opening of courtrooms.
Last fall, the Superior Court sounded the alarm about the labor shortage, recalling that the staff in place were working miracles, but that the situation could not last. The chief judge had even described as “heroes” these shadow employees who make justice work.
“I would like to acknowledge the excellent work of the court staff who are doing an excellent job,” a lawyer said during a hearing today.
Special constables too
Special constables, for their part, do not have the right to strike. And since they can no longer alter their uniform, they were no longer able to sport pink t-shirts or sheriff’s caps as a means of visibility.
Thus, today, they have all put on their fluorescent yellow jackets, in order to show their dissatisfaction with the slowness of the negotiations to renew their collective agreement. Because according to the estimates of their union, there is currently a lack of about fifty special constables in order to be able to adequately protect the courthouses across Quebec.
“We don’t wonder if we’re going to hit a wall, but when we’re going to hit it,” said union president Franck Perales.
Its service has approximately 360 members, but with the working conditions not very advantageous compared to police forces, special constables leave punctually for other skies, causing a “huge turnover”.
As for correctional services officers, they experience a similar situation due to the exodus of officers to better paid police forces.
“Correctional services are the great forgotten of the justice system,” commented Mathieu Lavoie, president of the Syndicat des agents de la paix en services correctionnels du Québec.
On the presence of detainees in the courtroom, the situation was resolved at the end of the morning, not without causing delays.
-With Camille Paid