The pace of negotiations between the government and the FIQ is accelerating

2023-08-21 19:34:35

At the end of an expected meeting between the Fédération interprofessionnelle de la santé (FIQ) and the Quebec government, one thing seems clear: the pace of negotiations for the renewal of the collective agreement for FIQ members will accelerate over the the next few weeks.

“We had this commitment that the work would meet the expectations of the healthcare professionals with regard to their working conditions,” declared the president of the FIQ, Julie Bouchard, at the end of her meeting with the Premier. , François Legault, and the President of the Treasury Board, Sonia LeBel. She confirmed that the work would accelerate “significantly” in the coming weeks.

M^me LeBel also seemed satisfied at the end of this meeting, which she described as “very cordial” in a press briefing. “What I remember from today’s meeting is their desire, at the FIQ and the government, to speed up the process [de négociation] “, she launched.

The meeting was held while negotiations between public sector unions and the government have been in full swing for months, without reaching a conclusion. In the absence of an agreement on new collective agreements, the unions do not exclude the possibility of going on strike.

Minister LeBel did not want to come forward on the possibility of a strike by the 80,000 members of the FIQ, who are nurses, licensed practical nurses, respiratory therapists and clinical perfusionists. “It belongs to them, the means of pressure”, she commented.

Julie Bouchard, president of the FIQ, does not exclude this possibility. “All means of pressure are really considered,” she confirmed in a firm voice. “If we have to go to the ultimate pressure tactic, well, we will. »

Earlier in the summer, the Administrative Labor Tribunal rendered decisions regarding the essential services to be maintained in the event of a strike by the FIQ. Emergency and intensive care services should be fully maintained.

Sonia LeBel also mentioned that she hoped to maintain a “slightly more positive” approach with the FIQ to “encourage people” to come and work in the health network. “We agreed that it is important for our nurses, for people in the healthcare network, to give them a perspective of improving working conditions, their workload, better work-family balance, even if it is not immediate […]. »

In the context of the negotiations, the FIQ is not part of the inter-union common front, which brings together more than 400,000 members and which notably includes the Confédération des Syndicats Nationaux and the Fédération des Travailleurs du Québec.