MONTREAL -- Despite several days of strike action this fall, workers in the province's public daycare system (CPE) are still being supported by many Quebecers.
A Léger survey conducted for the CSQ-affiliated Fédération des intervenantes en petite enfance (FIPEQ) reveals that among those aware of the labour dispute, 44 per cent say they support the workers, compared to 32 per cent who say they support the government.
Support for child care workers is higher among women than men -- 52 per cent versus 37 per cent.
It is also higher among those who have children -- 52 per cent who support them compared to 23 per cent who say they support the government.
FIPEQ, which commissioned the survey, says it wanted to gauge people's opinions on the issues that persist in the negotiations, namely the salaries of "other" workers in daycare centres, such as kitchen, administration and maintenance staff.
Léger asked people if they agreed with the statement that "not offering adequate wages to daycare cooks is an incentive for them to go work elsewhere where the pay is better"; some 69 per cent agreed.
The survey also asked people if they agreed with the statement, "Support workers in daycares (cooks, administrative staff etc.) deserve a higher salary increase than those given to civil servants in similar positions in other government organizations."
This time, 46 per cent agreed, while 41 per cent disagreed.
The poll was conducted online among 1,049 English and French speaking Quebec adults on Nov. 28.
If the same sample was measured by a telephone survey, the margin of error would be three per cent, 19 times out of 20.
-- This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on Dec. 1, 2021.
