Hundreds of striking legal aid lawyers are walking out this week, with one group of 200 lawyers walking out Monday and Tuesday and the other group of 210 lawyers doing the same on Wednesday and Thursday.
Demonstrations in front of courthouses across Quebec, in front of ministers' offices and in front of the National Assembly, are also on the agenda.
The legal aid lawyers are demanding parity with criminal and penal prosecutors.
"It is a perilous exercise that has to be repeated at the end of each collective agreement, at each deadline. Then the Crowns get their salary increases, their new working conditions. And we, at the legal aid level, as defence counsel, have to justify all the time why our work is just as hard and just as important as that of the Crowns. The exercise is always to be started again," said Daniel Lessard, vice-president of the Federation of Legal Aid Lawyers, in an interview.
He affirms that his group, which is independent of the central labour bodies, must use pressure tactics to change the government's position.
According to him, Quebec is offering a 2 per cent increase per year, the same as what it has paid to all government employees. For the fourth year, a committee would be formed to determine the salary increase to be paid.
The Federation of Legal Aid Lawyers points out that Crown attorneys have received 2.5 per cent per year for four years.
"It is important for legal aid to have lawyer retention. There is a predicted exodus of lawyers from legal aid to prosecution because it pays better. We want a strong and competent legal aid network. We want to retain the best lawyers in our network and one of the ways to do this is through parity," said Lessard.
The members of his federation will hold demonstrations on Wednesday morning in front of regional courthouses in Quebec City, Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean, Mauricie-Bois-Francs, the North Shore, Abitibi-Témiscamingue, the Outaouais and the South Shore of Montreal.
On Thursday, they will walk out all day and demonstrate in Quebec City and Longueuil.
They will have used a day-and-a-half of their three-day strike mandate.
On Monday and Tuesday, legal aid lawyers affiliated with the Federation of Professionals, affiliated with the CSN, will be on strike in their respective regions.
Their demand is the same as for salary parity with criminal and penal prosecutors.
Legal aid lawyers represent financially eligible citizens in matrimonial, civil, mental health, youth protection, criminal and young offender defence cases.
-- This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on June 6, 2022.
