This text is part of the special section Unionism
They come from a multitude of disciplines and deploy their expertise within the public service, state companies, in the health sector, higher education and even justice. State professionals have recently received media attention in the Northvolt case and in public sector negotiations. Cases which plead for better valorization of their expertise, according to Guillaume Bouvrette, president of the Union of Professionals of the Government of Quebec (SPGQ).
For several weeks, the debate surrounding the establishment of the battery manufacturer Northvolt in Montérégie has been making headlines. Particularly since the Minister of the Environment, Benoit Charette, admitted to having voluntarily spared the company an examination by the Bureau d’audiences publique sur l’environnement (BAPE) for its assembly plant project. This examination had however been recommended in the name of the “precautionary principle” by ministry professionals, according to Radio-Canada.
This case reflects a lack of respect and valorization of the expertise of state professionals, while contravening the duty of the province, according to Guillaume Bouvrette. “If we chose, in Quebec, to equip ourselves with a strong and independent public service to protect the missions of the State, it is to ensure impartiality and maintain stability over time which does not change according to circumstances. governments. »
According to the president, this example is just one among many others encountered by state professionals, particularly in the public service. “We have heard that, in certain ministries, requests for access to information filed by the media systematically branch off to ministers’ offices. »
If it does indeed take place, this practice would raise fears of political interference in the information disseminated to the public, while thumbing its nose at the integrity of professionals, believes the trade unionist. “Those who choose to serve the state often accept a slightly lower salary than what they could earn elsewhere because they care about their role. They adhere to the mission of the department or organization for which they work. »
However, steps have been taken in the right direction, says Guillaume Bouvrette. Particularly in the proposed revision of the law on the protection of whistleblowers, which plans to make the Public Protector the one-stop shop for processing disclosures of wrongdoing. Investigations will therefore no longer be carried out by the organizations concerned by the complaint. “It’s a way of respecting the word of state experts” by preventing any attempt to stifle complaints internally, he emphasizes.
Cultivate expertise and confidence
Valuing the expertise of government professionals also requires the employer to make informed choices regarding subcontracting. The leader pleads, in this respect, for occasional calls to external specialists so as not to prevent the development of internal expertise. “Some subcontractors have been in the same place for 15 or 20 years when we would have the means to attract this expertise within the Quebec public service. »
Means which, according to him, involve improving working conditions. The same ones that the SPGQ still carries in public sector negotiations for its members of the public service.
Beyond the demand for an increase in the salaries of these professionals – they are 15.3% lower than that of professionals in other public organizations, according to the Institut de la tourisme du Québec – the union ardently campaigned to register the right to telework in their collective agreement.
Indeed, while working entirely from home results in lower productivity, adopting a hybrid approach — two or three days in the office — generally has the opposite effect, according to a Stanford University study published in July. “A flexible mode based on trust works in terms of productivity, efficiency and professional autonomy,” maintains Guillaume Bouvrette. An approach which, according to him, must also apply to the use of the variable time slots available to civil servants within their working schedule.
The 2023-2028 human resources management strategy for the civil service also goes in this direction, according to the president. First, because it underlines the need, to guarantee its employees an enriching experience, to stand out as an employer of choice. “Recognition of professional autonomy, particularly through more flexible working hours and open teleworking, is a way to stand out at no cost to the employer. » But also because the strategy advocates the practice of management centered on the individual. “This implies giving it freedom of means to fulfill its mandates, to monitor them, to ensure that the work is done, delivered and of quality,” concludes Guillaume Bouvrette, who believes that it is by focusing on confidence in its professionals that the government will achieve its best results.
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