Demonstration before the National Assembly: FIQ nurses want their arguments heard

Thousands of members of the Fédération Interprofessional de la Santé du Québec (FIQ) besieged Grande Allée on Saturday to remind the Quebec government that negotiations with health care professionals are not yet over.

Majority of public sector nurses are still yet to sign an agreement with the government regarding the renewal of collective agreements.

Amid a flurry of talks, more than 3,000 members and activists gathered late in the morning in front of Quebec's National Museum of Fine Arts. The latter followed to the National Assembly with trumpets and shouts.

From the start, the FIQ's president, Julie Bouchard, described the show as an “important lever” because it takes place during a crucial period of negotiations with Quebec.

“There are still little things to fix, but these little things are very important to us […] It's already been a big discussion for 16 months and we want to have an agreement in principle,” she said during a press scrum before the show.

Julie Bouchard, FIQ President in front of ASNAT during the FIQ presentation.

DIDIER DEBUSSCHERE/JOURNAL DE QUEBEC

Long discussions

A few weeks ago, members of the Common Front, made up of CSN, CSQ, APTS and FTQ, approved a 74.8% agreement in principle with the Legault government at the end of December.

M^me Bouchard explained, however, that FIQ is better off keeping things a little quieter because it still lacks the most important elements to move forward.

“When we have an agreement in principle, we want to make sure that all healthcare professionals stick to it to make sure we don't go back later,” said more than 80,000 nurses, representing practice nurses, after 16 months of negotiations. Respiratory therapists and clinical perfusionists.

Thousands of members want to send a message to the government.

DIDIER DEBUSSCHERE/JOURNAL DE QUEBEC

A future contract?

While Julie Bouchard preferred to remain discreet about the current negotiations, she made it clear she hoped to reach an agreement in the coming hours or days.

“If we cannot do this, it is because we do not have the necessary element to provide quality care to the population,” the FIQ president said.

She also noted that the implementation of professional/patient safety ratios is a key factor in reaching an agreement to ensure quality care and the safety of all.