This text is part of the special Syndicalism booklet
At its annual convention last November, the Alliance of Professional and Technical Personnel in Health and Social Services (APTS) adopted its very first political platform, which is based on three areas: taking care of its members, the community and the environment.
In a pandemic context, when the already fragile health system was put to the test, this platform takes on its full meaning, testifying to a desire to go well beyond traditional claims. Because everyone has seen it over the past two years: if a virus can shake an entire society, those whose mission is to take care of the population inevitably suffer the repercussions.
The president of the APTS, Robert Comeau, was in the front row to see how the health crisis affected the daily lives, as well as the morale, of laboratory technologists, occupational therapists, speech therapists, physiotherapists, psychologists, etc. Because the 65,000 members of this union exercise professions less highlighted since the beginning of the crisis, but which are just as essential to the proper functioning of a hospital, a clinic or a school.
“The Legault government has noticed the problems of nurses and orderlies, and that’s good,” said the president of the APTS, who is also a medical imaging technologist. But those in youth centers are only the tip of the iceberg. We are bathed in a perpetual climate of crisis, and we never stop wondering on which side it will burst; professionals are exhausted from experiencing this stress. »
Their fatigue affects the clientele just as much, but not necessarily in the same way as for the nurses, insists the man who has been involved with the APTS since its founding. “Their absence [à l’urgence ou au bloc opératoire] is immediately felt. On our side, it is reflected in the waiting lists. They keep getting longer, and for most people, that means a six-month or a year of waiting. But following an accident, getting an appointment with a physiotherapist quickly is important. Same thing for the psychologist in a crisis situation. »
For dialogue and solutions
In order to remedy the situation and shorten the delays, does the solution require a greater contribution from the private sector? “We are not against it,” says Robert Comeau. In exceptional times like this pandemic, it can help the public network. »
According to some, this imbalance is also caused by a desertion of workers from the public sector to the benefit of the private sector, which the president of the APTS acknowledges.
“It is attractive, with better salaries and better working conditions, but I can assure you that our members have at heart the public service, which exists to serve the population, regardless of their income. But they also want to work in a sufficient number of teams and have their expertise recognized. Which is not always the case, everyone agrees.
Does Health Minister Christian Dubé’s desire to “overhaul” the system represent a glimmer of hope in the eyes of the APTS? “It will probably come later, but at least the government does not seem to want to change the structures,” says Robert Comeau with relief. We are talking about reinvesting in mental health, in youth centres, sectors that have been underfunded for too long. One thing is certain: we will not practice an empty chair policy. Our members expect us to provide solutions, and I will be their spokesperson. »
In these forthcoming debates, the issue of funding will be unavoidable. In an open letter published on April 4 at the initiative of the Bloc Québécois and co-signed by several labor organizations, including the APTS, an urgent appeal is made to the Trudeau government for an increase in health transfers, while calming its desires to interference in provincial jurisdictions. Robert Comeau has trouble understanding this federal posture, making the accountability task of an already exhausted network more difficult, especially since the money comes from the pockets of the same taxpayer.
According to him, the Quebec government could set an example by creating a budgetary shield around the sums devoted to health and social services, protection even, and above all, in times of turbulence. Expenditures will be $54.2 billion in 2022-2023, “and it is tempting to go dip there because the room for maneuver is greater”. At least in appearance.