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June 29, 1999
Striking Quebec nurses need your support
The Quebec government has begun handing out harsh penalties to the province's striking nurses. Those penalties, announced yesterday by Premier Lucien Bouchard's government, include docking the pay of striking nurses, imposing hefty fines and threatening to slash their seniority.
The 47,500-member Quebec Federation of Nurses (Federation des Infirmieres et Infirmiers du Quebec) began a province-wide strike on June 26, after the government refused to bargain in good faith. Like overworked and underpaid nurses in every Canadian province, Quebec nurses want better pay, improved working conditions and a lighter workload.
The nurses were seeking a 15 per cent wage increase over three years, but the Quebec government refuses to budge from its offer of a 5 per cent increase over three years.
The government calls the strike illegal and has now invoked the powers of Bill 160, the Draconian back-to-work legislation passed in Quebec in 1986 and used against nurses in 1989. Bill 160 allows the Quebec government to dock workers in the health sector one year of seniority and two days wages for each day of a strike. It also allows the government to impose daily fines on the union.
Yesterday, the government used Bill 160 to: withhold two hours of salary for each hour striking nurses are off the job; impose a $125,000 fine against the Quebec Federation of Nurses and 22 of its member unions for every strike day; and to withhold 12 weeks worth of union dues for each day of strike. Total fines, including penalties imposed for two one-day strikes held several weeks ago, are estimated to be more than $14 million.
Despite those harsh penalties, Quebec nurses, who have received strong public support, promise to remain on strike until their demands are met.
BCNU's executive will be making a financial donation to assist striking Quebec nurses. Our executive will also make a financial donation to Saskatchewan nurses who may be hit with hefty fines for the strike action they were forced to take earlier this year.
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