MONTREAL -- While Quebec Family Minister Mathieu Lacombe was praising his government as "A government that, for the first time in 20 years, really wants to solve the problems in child care," child care workers were still on strike.

On Friday, opposition parties questioned the families minister on child care, trying to get him to talk about the negotiation of collective agreements with the various daycare worker unions, but he did not bite and give any details.

Lacombe simply repeated that his government was proposing a wage catch-up for educators. He also criticized the Liberals who, when they were in power, had given them increases of 1 per cent per year or less, and sometimes 2 per cent.

The families minister admitted that educators "are not paid enough."

"The negotiations are not over. Unions have demands and the government has demands," he said. "Negotiation is a conversation and we are in the middle of it. I am confident that we will reach an agreement."

He mainly talked about the 37,000 places that his government wants to deploy in daycare centres and the process that he has simplified to develop them.

He also emphasized the agreement he reached with the RSGs, the Family Day Care Managers. They have actually seen their subsidy for their home child care increase by 30 per cent.

LACK OF RESPECT

However, PQ MNA Véronique Hivon reminded him that there was a massive hole in the profession as there is a lack of enrolment education programs.

"The government itself said that there was a shortage of 17,800 educators at the very least," she said.

Quebec Solidaire MNA Christine Labrie called it a "lack of respect" that the government is trying to convince them, through bonuses, to accept the 40-hour workweek.

"Our heroines are not recognized as such," said Liberal MNA Marc Tanguay.

DISAPPOINTED AND ON STRIKE

Meanwhile, daycare workers who are members of the CSQ-affiliated Fédération des intervenantes en petite enfance unions held another day of strike action on Friday.

They also listened to the minister being questioned in theatres in Quebec, at the invitation of the FIPEQ, and were unimpressed by the minister's answers.

"You're proving to us how little you consider us," said one.

"You're not answering our questions about our working conditions," criticized another.

THE DISPUTE

The main issues in dispute are wages and workweek length.

Child care workers' unions are demanding more generous increases, not only for childcare workers, but also for the workers who support them in the kitchen, cleaning and administration tasks, as well as for specialized childcare workers.

Quebec wants to encourage them to adopt the 40-hour workweek, by means of a $50 per week bonus. Currently, many are working 32 to 36 hours.

Next week, it will be the daycare workers' turn. They are members of the Syndicat québécois des employés de service, affiliated with the FTQ, and will walk out on Tuesday and Wednesday.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on Nov. 5, 2021.