Public sector strike in Quebec enters 2nd day, more walkouts expected later this week
CTV
Unions representing hundreds of thousands of Quebec public sector workers, particularly in health care and education, are on strike again.
Hundreds of thousands of Quebec public sector workers, particularly in health care and education, are on strike again Wednesday.
The workers are part of a Common Front that have planned a three-day strike until Thursday, closing schools and delaying surgeries.
Union leaders say they believe "momentum is finally building" in negotiations thanks to the appointment of a conciliator.
He has already met with the four unions that make up the Common Front, the Fédération des travailleurs et travailleuses du Québec (FTQ), the Alliance du personnel professionnel et technique de la santé et des services sociaux (APTS), the Confédération des syndicats nationaux (CSN) and the Centrale des syndicats du Québec (CSQ).
Discussions are set to resume on Wednesday and Thursday in Quebec City, confirmed CSN Vice President François Enault.
"What we wanted was movement at the bargaining table, and what we've been hearing since yesterday -- there's nothing settled here -- but at the very least, momentum is building," he said. "The conciliators are doing the job we wanted them to do, which is to get the government to sit down and give us the answers we've been waiting for, for months."
The unions say the government's most recent contract offer, a 10.3-per-cent salary increase over five years and a one-time payment of $1,000 to each worker, isn't enough.
