CUPE Quebec is very pleased to learn that N95 respiratory protective devices (RPD) will finally be deployed in all hot zones in Quebec to continue the fight against the pandemic.
“Finally! We wish to congratulate the Commission des normes, de l’équité, de la santé et de la sécurité du travail (CNESST) for making this decision at long last. We’ve been demanding this for almost a year now since the health crisis first started. Protecting employees will, in fact, protect the entire public,” declared Frédéric Brisson, the President of CUPE’s Conseil provincial des affaires sociales.
“Our members have been on the front lines since the beginning. Several have fallen ill and others have died. This decision will save lives,” he added.
The union will now focus on deploying the masks, since the CNESST is recommending that N95s be worn starting on February 11. We will have to ensure that the necessary inventory is available in all of the institutions concerned within the next two days.
“We will also ensure that all employees wear N95s in hot zones. We don’t want the wearing of the N95s to be mandatory just under certain specific conditions. We won’t want to get into a debate with managers if there are too many restrictions. All we want to do is protect our workers,” added Frédéric Brisson.