The Quebec government has inexcusably fallen behind on its payments relating to pay equity maintenance agreements. This affects thousands of workers in the health and social services system. According to the FSSS-CSN, SQEES-FTQ, CUPE, APTS and the FP-CSN, minister Dubé must put an end to the delays and announce the date that payments will be made. The government must do what is required to ensure that these payments are made as quickly as possible.
Thousands of women are still awaiting pay equity maintenance payments. They have been working since 2010 to 2016 at salaries lower than what they should have been and are each owed thousands of dollars. A few institutions have announced payment dates. However, we are still waiting for the government to announce the official payment date, as these amounts have been outstanding for quite some time and the government is having trouble retaining staff in the system. These delays accomplish nothing.
“In the midst of the sixth COVID-19 wave, the patience of workers in the health and social services system has reached its limits. They are still being asked to make efforts relating to the pandemic, and they can’t even be paid what they’re owed. Revamping the health and social services system is fine and dandy, but the government must first meet its commitments. The same goes for the employees’ trust, which is crucial when any change to the system is being considered. Need anyone be reminded that employees are one of the four pillars of the minister’s project to overhaul the system? Neglecting them sends a very bad signal,” said the spokespersons for the FSSS-CSN, SQEES-FTQ, CUPE, APTS and the FP-CSN.