Vol. 79/No. 19      May 25, 2015

The province-wide mobilization was organized by the Quebec Federation of Labor, Confederation of National Trade Unions and Confederation of Quebec Unions, Quebec’s three main union federations, in collaboration with a coalition of more than 856 community organizations affected by the cuts.

“We are doing this for the future of our children,” technician Natalie Lapierre told the Militant on a boisterous lunch-hour picket line of members of the SFPQ (Quebec government professional workers union) in front of the Revenue Quebec building in Montreal where she works. Union member Josée Dandurand said she saw the protest as part of a broader social movement. “We have to be in solidarity with people everywhere — like the Africans crossing the Mediterranean,” she said.

They were joined by a chanting crowd of 75 students from the École Marguerite de la Jemmerais, a public school for young women across the street, who walked out of classes to participate in the protest. They carried “Reject austerity” placards.

Thousands of CEGEP (pre-university college) teachers had voted to join in a one-day “social strike.” A court ruled the strike illegal. But students put up their own picket lines and many colleges were shut down.

A hundred students and teachers picketed outside Rosemont CEGEP. “It’s important for the students to give our support to the teachers,” said Student Association President Émilie Bélanger, explaining that the government had cut $900,000 from the college budget. “Here this means cuts in the hours for the library, the elimination of outdoor soccer and a possible increase in student fees.”

“About 1,000 teachers rallied at four places along highway 30 south of Montreal,” secondary school teacher Josette Hurtubise said. “We were protesting $300 million in education cuts, which will mean higher student teacher ratios, cuts in school services and $50 less in investment per student in the coming year.”

Unifor, Canada’s largest private sector union, organized a protest in front of Air Canada’s offices in Montreal, and also in Halifax, Nova Scotia; St. John’s, Newfoundland; and Saint John, New Brunswick, supporting the fight by special assistance workers against the contracting out of 130 jobs in Toronto.

Prior to the May 1 mobilization, 60,000 university and college students, mostly in Montreal, carried out strikes against the cuts in March and April. At the high point April 2, more than 30,000 students and supporters marched in Montreal against the provincial government’s budget.

“We are completely in solidarity with all those who today are mobilizing,” Alexis Tremblay, president of the Federation of Pre-University College Students, told La Presse May 1.

The 2015-16 budget that went into effect April 1 contains $729 million in new cuts. Area school boards will receive $45 million less. The universities will lose $10 million and the CEGEP system, $21 million.

The budget is balanced on the assumption that the three union’s Common Front, representing some 550,000 government workers, will take wage concessions in negotiations that have begun for a new contract. The government is offering a two-year wage freeze followed by three years of 1 percent wage increases. The public sector unions are demanding an increase of 4.5 percent over each of the next three years. Their contracts expired March 31.

“Will there be changes to the balanced budget, debt relief, or fiscal burden? No. There will be no changes,” Quebec Premier Philippe Couillard said in response to the mobilizations.

“Today, the concerns of workers are the same concerns as everyone. The struggles of others are our struggles … because we are all affected by the austerity measures,” Daniel Boyer, president of the 600,000-member Quebec Federation of Labor, told the press.

Al Cappe and Philippe Tessier contributed to this article.  
 
 
Front page (for this issue) | Home | Text-version home