The Fédération interprofessionnelle de la santé du Québec (FIQ), the province’s largest nurses union, is not planning a strike to support its negotiations with the Quebec government for now – but they are not ruling it out, depending on things develop.
Negotiations to renew the collective agreement were relaunched with Quebec after 61 per cent of members rejected the agreement in principle in April, that had been reached the month before.
In an interview on Thursday, Jérôme Rousseau, Vice-President of the FIQ and co-responsible for the negotiations, indicated that for the time being, the pressure tactics would be lighter.
For example, every Tuesday, FIQ members will wear a black uniform top, marked with “y’a des limites” (there are limits).
Other types of demonstrations and gestures, but he remained elusive on the subject for the time being.
Rousseau said that “strike action is not ruled out at all,” but it will not be done for the time being. FIQ members walked off the job for eight days last fall.
The FIQ represents 80 000 plus nurses, respiratory therapists, clinical perfusionists, and more who work in health institutions province-wide. Close to 90 per cent of its members are women.
Mobility at the heart of negotiations
The negotiations are focused on the main issue which is the mobility and flexibility that’s expected from nurses.
Health establishment managers want to be able to move nurses from one institution to another, or from one care unit to another, to meet needs. Quebec has insisted on several occasions that it must find a way to provide these services.
“Nurses refuse to accept what they see as forced transfers, seeing this as a lack of recognition of their expertise. On the contrary, they want stability,” said Rousseau. “We know that voluntary work, under the right conditions, can be attractive, and we know that it could appeal to some of our members who would be willing to put up their hands. So yes, that could be part of the solution.”
Negotiations are continuing with the Quebec government and another meeting is scheduled for next week.
Rousseau said that the FIQ is waiting for clarification to understand what the government wants in terms of flexibility, because he explained how there’s a discrepancy between the public discourse of Health Minister Christian Dubé and what is being said at the negotiating table.
“We’re waiting for clearer answers from management, because Sonia LeBel and her team, between what they tell us at the table about the need for flexibility versus what Dubé says in the news, there’s a gap which makes it difficult to know exactly what they want,” concluded Rousseau.
–This report by La Presse Canadienne was translated by CityNews