This text is part of the special section Unionism
On March 16, a large gathering of healthcare professionals from the Fédération interprofessionnelle de la santé du Québec (FIQ) took place in Quebec, in support of negotiations for the collective agreement.
“The population has been so behind us in recent months, we wanted to highlight the commitment of our members and their families,” underlines Julie Bouchard, president of the FIQ. The event, which takes place from noon on Saturday March 16, is intended to be festive, family-friendly and unifying. “Since the pandemic – and even before – it’s been difficult for them,” confides Mme Bouchard, who recalls that the Federation has been in negotiations for more than a year.
Demonstrations in front of the National Assembly, kiosks and activities for children and a performance by the Bleu Jeans Bleu group are on the program for the day, under the theme “It’s got to move”. Activities for the family will then be offered at the Convention Center. “We want to thank the families of the members and show the government that it must prioritize negotiations with the FIQ, it is so important,” summarizes Mme Bouchard. The FIQ represents more than 80,000 members at the heart of the Quebec health system: nurses, practical nurses, respiratory therapists and clinical perfusionists.
Negotiations continuing
Indeed, if the negotiations with the Inter-union Common Front and the teacher strikes in many schools and CEGEPs monopolized the headlines before the holidays, “our negotiations are still not over,” recalls Mme Bouchard (the FIQ is not part of the Common Front). The union demands were submitted on November 7, 2022, “but the real negotiations began at the end of January 2023,” she specifies.
Since the beginning of March, negotiations have intensified between the two parties at the request of the FIQ. “There remain elements on both sides on which [il faut] get along,” admits Mme Bouchard. Despite the time running out, the union side does not want to skip any steps. “Our conciliator is with us and we are not racing to sign the agreement, we really want something that will be a lever for the next steps,” she adds.
Improve working conditions
The Legault government is offering a 12.7% salary increase over five years, and the employer side is asking that any salary gain be offset by an increase in “flexibility”. But beyond the salary, it is the working conditions that must above all be changed, believes Mme Bouchard: “Yes, we want to offer an interesting monetary side, but it is the working conditions that will change things on a daily basis, in the care we give, but also in the attraction and retention of staff, and especially for the future of the public health network. »
The union side wishes to enable a better work-family balance for its members. The FIQ requests in particular that compulsory travel (i.e. the fact of deploying an employee to another hospital or department to avoid disruptions in services) be voluntary. Even if the government seems open, the FIQ remains on the lookout for this public statement to be reflected in the negotiations.
The famous TSO (compulsory overtime), criticized for a long time, is also one of the hot topics in the negotiations. “Mandatory overtime work has become a management method and not an exception,” notes M.me Bouchard. We are being asked to change the definition of overtime, which would be a major step backwards,” she is surprised. In fact, the government would like FIQ members to be paid overtime only beyond 37.5 hours per week. “Always, from the moment we worked overtime beyond our shift, we were paid [à un taux horaire plus élevé] », says Mme Bouchard. The management side would like to pay professionals the same hourly wage, even if their day extends over 12 hours or even 16 hours in a row. “It oppresses those who are part-time, among others,” argues the president of the FIQ.
While waiting to reach a final agreement, the March 16 demonstration aims to revitalize the troops. “We still have a lot of energy to put into our negotiations and we are not giving up,” concludes M.me Bouchard.
A health reform to watch
This content was produced by the Special Publications team at Duty, relating to marketing. The writing of the Duty did not take part.