Strike at the INSPQ: “we are worth more than peanuts”
More than forty INSPQ employees were present in front of their Montreal offices to mark the start of their three-day strike.
More than forty employees of the Institut national de la santé publique du Québec (INSPQ) carried posters and slogans demanding better salaries and better recognition of their expertise as they begin a three-day strike, disrupting the activities of the organization.
Represented by the Union of Public Health Professionals of Quebec (SPPSPQ-CSQ), INSPQ employees are still without a collective agreement since 2020, the latter being renewed in 2023.
Fr interview with Métro, the vice-president of the SPPSPQ-CSQ, Maryse Beaudry, explains that the members are angry about the wage gap that exists between them and employees of other public health networks of the province.
“We are talking about a salary gap of 15 to 20%. However, we have been present during the pandemic and we have always offered our support and the offers we have received are derisory. The members therefore decided to vote for a 97% strike. »
” We are also essential “
Mrs. INSPQ is thecenter of scientific expertise and that employees are not paid even though research is an essential part of the functioning of the public health network.
“Our experts are at the center of scientific research. They are the ones who analyze and advise the government and public health, but we are paid less than the network we advise. Our expertise must be recognized, in the same way as those of INESSS who are paid 22% more for the same work”, specifies the vice-president of the SPPSPQ-CSQ.
She adds that precariousness is also a major problem at the INSPQ since only 25% of employees have a permanent position, an element that the union is focusing on to increase professional security.
Several demonstrators sent messages reminding the government of the essential nature of the INSPQ for public health. Caption: David Beauchamp, Métro
The indefinite general strike envisaged
Maryse Beaudry points out that negotiations will continue until Wednesday and hopes that INSPQ employees will receive more interesting offers, specifying that an indefinite general strike is an option considered in the event of an impasse.
We will present our members with the offers we will receive, but it is certain that our members will not accept pinottes. It's the members who will make the final decision, but these people have experienced inflation and the pandemic like everyone else and we haven't had a salary increase since 2018. At the start of the pandemic, we agreed to put the negotiations aside, but there, the government must recognize our essential expertise.
Maryse Beaudry, vice-president of the Syndicat des professionals de la santé publique du Québec
