MONTREAL — An alliance of Quebec unions representing 420,000 public sector workers said Thursday it reached a deal on salaries with the provincial government, a crucial step toward ending the labour conflict that has shut schools and delayed surgeries since November.
The deal, which has to be approved by members, paves the way to settling new collective agreements with the so-called "common front" — the largest labour group negotiating with the province.
"On the salary front, the objectives of the common front were based on two key principles: protecting our 420,000 workers against inflation and securing a certain overall catch-up of wages for all workers. And that's what guided us throughout this negotiation blitz to reach a tentative agreement proposal," the group said in a news release.
Four major unions compose the common front — FTQ, CSN, APTS and CSQ — and they represent hundreds of thousands of workers in sectors such as education and health care. Earlier this week, the government reached a tentative agreement with the common front on working conditions.
The four unions said the tentative deal will be presented over the coming days to their member groups, which will decide whether to take the agreement to workers for a vote.
The common front has launched 11 days of strikes since November to pressure the government to reach a deal.
Meanwhile, a union representing around 40 per cent of the province's teachers — who aren't part of the common front — said Wednesday it was ready to present to its leadership a "global settlement" covering salaries and working conditions — a major step before more than 66,000 teachers end their walkout, which began Nov. 23.
The last major labour group without any kind of deal — Fédération interprofessionnelle de la santé du Québec, which represents 80,000 health-care workers — said Thursday that negotiations are ongoing.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 28, 2023.
The Canadian Press
