There are thousands of vacancies in the Quebec government

The unions have called for a meeting with Treasury board chairperson Sonia Label to find solutions to fill the thousands of vacancies in the Quebec public service that have been hit hard by labor shortages.

A few days before the Legalt government’s next budget was presented, union representatives appeared before the media on Monday to share their expectations.

Lacking enough staff, they blamed management for costing the state “suddenly extra time”.

“The list of shortage jobs in the public service is as long as your hand: psychologists, veterinarians, agronomists, inspectors, architects, computer scientists and so on,” said Line Lamarre, president of the Syndicate of Quebec Government Experts and Experts (SPGQ).

Many consequences

According to them, the list of implications of this labor shortage is also very large: the computer shift in danger, the increase in waiting times, the risk to the health and safety of workers, especially among the correctional officers.

That is why they urgently need to reinvest in the working conditions of these employees in the same way they did for teachers and health workers to prevent them from migrating to the private, federal and municipalities.

“In 2021, we have 20 people who went for another job and 20 who retired. At this rate, it’s sure to put our name on the list of endangered and endangered species, ”said Martin Perrol, president of the Syndicate des Agent de la Fనెne du Quebec (SAFPQ).

At zero cost

According to them, this reinvestment can be done at zero cost to the taxpayers. Quebec has enough to transfer about $ 1.5 billion it has invested today in subcontracting in its public services.

“We are not saying the subcontract should be abolished altogether, but we should only place it in areas where there are long-term projects that have been certified by the Public Service,” explained the Union President of the Union of Public and Para Public Services of Quebec. (SFPQ), Christian Diegel.

In addition to SPGQ, SAFPQ and SFPQ were represented Monday by the Professional Association of Government Engineers of Quebec (APIGQ) and the Union of Peace Officers in Correctional Services of Quebec (SAPSCQ-CSN).