QUEBEC CITY -- The Centrale des syndicats du Quebec (CSQ) general negotiating council confirmed Friday that the latest contract offer from the Treasury Board was deemed insufficient, but CSQ delegates mandated their representatives to continue negotiating with the government.
The General Council met during the day on Thursday after some 73,000 elementary and secondary teachers of the CSQ announced early in the morning that they would walk out for part of the day on April 14, from 12:01 a.m. to 9:30 a.m.
The objective is to disrupt mainly school administration, while mitigating the impact on educational services.
The strike mandate on which they and other CSQ members in the education sector have already voted is a five-day strike to be exercised at the appropriate time.
The treasury board has maintained its offer of a 5 per cent wage increase over three years, but with a possible increase of $400 million if the inflation rate exceeds the 5 per cent threshold and if the growth forecast by the Quebec government materializes.
According to CSQ President Sonia Ethier, Treasury Board President Sonia LeBel, who this week described her offer as fair and generous, is not living in the same reality as the CSQ unions.
Ethier criticized the government for inflating its offers with theoretical and temporary amounts while refusing to grant significant financial margins to improve sectoral working conditions.
The CSQ is asking for 3 per cent over three years for sectoral negotiations.
-- this report by The Canadian Press was first published March 4, 2021.
