After a break of just over 24 hours, negotiations resumed on Tuesday between Quebec and public sector unions. On Christmas Eve, almost all of the 420,000 members of the Common Front had reached tentative agreements in principle at the sectoral tables. Thus, pressure is mounting at the central table, where salaries and pensions are negotiated.
“This week, it’s either make or break,” summarizes Marc Ranger, former Quebec director of the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), in an interview with Le Devoir. “When it comes to wages, the pressure is strong and expectations are high from the unions. But the Common Front, which should pave the way for the FIQ and the FAE, can always go into an unlimited general strike in January if things get stuck. »
The unions want salary increases to help counter inflation and enrich their members, while the government tries to respect its budgetary framework. “The two parties do not agree on the starting year of their calculations,” explains Mr. Ranger. While 2022 did very badly, with an increase in the Consumer Price Index of 6.8%, Quebec repeats that inflation must be taken into account from 2023. But the negative effects must of 2022 are compensated. »
Progress at sectoral tables
Marc Ranger specifies that negotiations at sectoral tables – on working conditions – also influence remuneration. “We saw it with the [Fédération des syndicats de l’enseignement (FSE-CSQ)] who reached an agreement in principle on Friday: there were gains in teachers’ entry-level salaries. On the side of the FIQ and the FAE, we will certainly try to seek bonuses and bonuses at the sectoral tables as well. »
Last weekend, nine federations from the Centrale des syndicats du Québec (CSQ) and eight from the Confédération des syndicats nationaux (CSN), as well as the Alliance of Professional and Technical Personnel in Health and Social Services (APTS) and the College Council of the Canadian Union of Public Employees, affiliated with the FTQ, have arrived at hypothetical sectoral agreements in principle with the government.
These numerous agreements suggest a positive pace in the negotiations between Quebec and the inter-union common front, of which the CSQ, the CSN, the FTQ and the APTS are part, at a time when negotiations are intensifying at the central table. “It’s not yet won, nuance Marc Ranger, since the members of the unions must still accept them. Several agreements in principle in the public sector have recently been refused. Unions face enormous pressure. »
The turn of the FIQ and the FAE?
Following all these announcements from members of the Common Front, pressure is now increasing on the Autonomous Education Federation (FAE) and the Interprofessional Health Federation of Quebec (FIQ), which are negotiating individually with the government.
“It is clear that the FAE will not have a penny more than the FSE, but that it will draw inspiration from their agreement,” maintains Mr. Ranger. It is also impossible, in my opinion, for the FAE to continue its indefinite general strike until the start of the school year, because its members will want to see their students and have a normal start to the school year. »
On the FIQ side, it is more difficult to say, according to the former union leader. “This is probably the case where the positions are the most opposed. But the conciliator who was appointed could facilitate the negotiations. In particular, he could make recommendations to the delegates so that they can have them approved by their members. […] It could be an honorable way out. »
Both the government and the various unions have expressed the desire to reach agreements regarding the renewal of collective agreements before the end of the year.
With The Canadian Press
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2023-12-26 21:57:05
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