BY KATY LEROUGETEL
QUEBEC CITY, Quebec - Between 5,000 and 8,000 public sector workers, members the Confederation of National Trade Unions (CSN), one of six major unions representing over 400,000 provincial public sector workers, in the wind and falling snow December 7. They were protesting the provincial government's plans to cut wages by 5 percent. The government proposes to cease pension deductions for these workers up until the summer of 1998 because of a surplus in the pension fund. This, the government claims, would mean workers' take-home pay would remain the same.
Banners indicated participation from all over the province. Three busloads of demonstrators traveled 10 hours overnight from the northern region of Abitibi- Temiscamingue. Almost all the marchers were public sector workers.
Jacques Morin, a worker with 28 years' seniority at a psychiatric institute in Roberval, said, "In 1982 we lost 20 percent of our salary - for good. Since 1992, we haven't had a single raise. We don't have any protection against inflation." Referring to the recently announced closure of a meat products distribution center, he added, "Look at Maple Leaf. They've been here for 75 years and now they're leaving. We don't have a choice but to be out here."
Coming up on the busses from Montreal, Nicole Champagne, a retirement home worker, explained that last week's paycheck was the first full week's pay she had received since July. She works on call. Government dipping into union pension funds "is the kiss of death. We have to stop the government's scheming," Champagne declared.
Her co-worker, Louise Brisebois, added, "There are thousands of workers on layoff because of the hospital closures six months ago. They're being paid to stay home and do nothing. Why? When I was sick last week, the administration called in someone from a temp agency to replace me. I think they're going to privatize our services over the next 10 years."
Sylvain Bédard, the union local president at the IGA grocery store in Chicoutimi, explained that 25 of the 63 workers on strike there had come in on the busses to show solidarity. They sold donuts and carried hand-made signs.
Students Daphnée Savard and Jonathan Juneau from the Quebec City junior college of Garneau said that they had also marched with the union demonstration of 15,000 two weeks ago in Quebec City. They were wearing buttons which said, "YES to free schooling." They had blacked out the line limiting the demand to the junior college level, explaining, "We think schooling should be free for everyone." Up to 60,000 students in the province recently organized strikes and demonstrations against tuition fee hikes.
Referring to the fact that provincial premier Lucien Bouchard leads the pro-sovereignty Parti Québécois, supported by union officials and many workers, Gilles Deschaines, a retirement home worker, commented, "We're separatist, but there are limits." A number of placards held by marchers from the Louis H. Lafontaine hospital in Montreal showed CSN president Gerald Larose holding the reins of a carriage being pulled by Bouchard, with the caption, "The CSN takes back the reins."
Government ministers are frequent targets for union pickets at their public appearances around the province these days. On December 5, several thousands of teachers held a mock funeral procession for education, complete with coffins and some marchers in executioners' garb.
The six union federations representing public sector workers are organizing strike votes in preparation of a 24- hour strike that may be held before Christmas. While often hotly debated, many strike votes are coming in at 80 percent and more in favor. Under Provincial Law 160, many workers face loss of one year of seniority for every day of strike, explained Louise Brisebois. She lost two years' seniority as a result of her strike participation in 1989.
At economic summits held this spring and fall, provincial union, business, and government officials reached consensus that all would work towards a zero government deficit by the year 2000. Many union placards at the demonstration read "Public finances: a problem for all society" and "Service cutbacks won't solve the deficit."
"It's not up to us to pay the deficit," commented Nicole Champagne. "Go get the money out of the pockets of those who earn $100,000 a year or more."
Katy LeRougetel is a member of Canadian Auto Workers union Local 187 in Ste. Eustache, Quebec.