November 9, 2021

The leaders of the labour organizations representing nursing and cardio-respiratory care staff find it hard to understand Minister Dubé’s comments at his press briefing. As the labour organizations see it, the minister seems to be looking for someone to blame for staff recruitment difficulties.

Clearly Minister Dubé did not look at the many solutions the labour organizations sent the MSSS in the last few days. Remember that labour organizations that represent healthcare professionals recently extended a hand to the government to implement solutions to attract and retain staff in the network. We are proposing solutions, based on the demands of our members in the field, without coercive, disqualifying or inequitable measures.

Instead of discussing solutions that would allow them to quickly implement measures that would truly help bring healthcare professionals back, the government refused to respond.Minister Dubé is suggesting that we are only interested in union leaves, which is far from the main point of the solutions brought to the table at recent meetings with the MSSS.

“To date, the government’s plan to recruit staff hasn’t been very successful. Instead of recognizing his mistakes and agreeing to collaborate with stakeholders in the field to improve things, Minister Dubé is attacking unions once again. It’s a well-worn tactic. What isn’t working is the authoritarian management by way of ministerial orders. The government isn’t getting the results it wanted but that’s not the unions’ fault,” said the leaders of the FSQ-CSQ, FIQ, FSSS-CSN, SQEES-FTQ and CUPE.

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The solutions proposed by labour organizations representing nursing and cardio-respiratory care staff

No coercive, disqualifying, or inequitable measures for members.

1. All days paid under the collective agreement are supposed to be workdays eligible for the different lump sums.
2. All unpaid absences are not considered to be days worked and so proration applies.
3. Ensure that the lump sums are paid in compliance with public laws to employees covered by the SAAQ, CNESST, QPIP, and salary insurance.
4. At no time can amounts paid be reclaimed unless an employee resigns, with the exception of if they change institutions.
5. All shifts worked on the weekend entitle employees to lump sums without any exclusions.
6. Any period of four consecutive weeks of evenings or nights entitles employees to the $2,000 lump sums without any exclusions, but with the proration (vacations, statutory holidays). Part-time employees who agree to upgrade their position while remaining part-time will receive the lump sum prorated to their upgraded shifts.
7. The lump sums are granted, starting on the date of an agreement to upgrade to full-time or to upgrade to part-time while remaining part-time, to anyone who agrees, at any given moment, on a voluntary basis.
8. Any employee who is part-time may ask to be considered full-time for the period set out in the agreement. The employee will resume the part-time position they had at the time of the initial agreement.
9. When an employee resigns, time worked on a full-time basis or part-time basis on upgraded shifts, is prorated for that period for amounts already paid and due. If the employee changes institutions in the public health network, the agreement is transferred to the new employer.
10. A rehired retiree is subject to the provisions of the collective agreements. Local parties may agree on a different schedule organization for the duration of the agreement. The lump sum must be paid prorated to the days worked.
11. All measures must comply with the rules in the collective agreement in effect, especially the concept of reassignment.
12. Part-time employees who agree to increase their hours without a full upgrade to full-time will receive a lump sum for each of their additional shifts.
13. For employees who are already full-time and for those who agree to upgrade to part-time or full-time, the employer agrees to guarantee a stable position, on one shift in one service, as well as predictable scheduling.
14. As for the measures announced about the addition of administrative staff and the bursaries for LPN training, the government agrees to submit the plan for deployment to the labour organizations.
15. No signed contract currently in effect may be enforced against an employee