Canada
This article was added by the user . TheWorldNews is not responsible for the content of the platform.

Quebec offers to extend nurses bonuses to June

Several bonuses, including a three per cent bonus for healthcare workers, were set to expire on Thursday.

Without shift bonuses, "what is likely to happen is perhaps to see a vacuum of healthcare professionals who, instead of remaining in positions with unfavourable shifts, will instead want to go to day shifts," says Julie Bouchard, president of the FIQ nurses union.
Without shift bonuses, "what is likely to happen is perhaps to see a vacuum of healthcare professionals who, instead of remaining in positions with unfavourable shifts, will instead want to go to day shifts," says Julie Bouchard, president of the FIQ nurses union. Photo by Jacques Boissinot /The Canadian Press files

Special bonuses for Quebec nurses, which were due to end on Thursday, could be extended until at least June.

The extension is part of the proposals that the Treasury Board made on Monday to public sector unions, when it tabled a new offer for state employees.

Sign up to receive daily headline news from the Montreal Gazette, a division of Postmedia Network Inc.

By clicking on the sign up button you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. You may unsubscribe any time by clicking on the unsubscribe link at the bottom of our emails or any newsletter. Postmedia Network Inc. | 365 Bloor Street East, Toronto, Ontario, M4W 3L4 | 416-383-2300

On March 30, several bonuses are set to end, in particular a three per cent bonus paid to all healthcare professionals. A 2.5 per cent night bonus and a four per cent evening bonus are also to end on Thursday for those who work full-time in 24/7 centres.

The president of the Fédération interprofessionnelle de la santé (FIQ), Julie Bouchard, had already sounded the alarm a few days ago, fearing the repercussions of the end of these bonuses for nurses who would then see reduced pay.

“Just the 3.5 per cent bonus is perhaps around $5,000 per year” per healthcare professional — depending on the salary level, she said. The 3.5 per cent premium is paid to nurses, nursing assistants, respiratory therapists and clinical perfusionists.

If these bonuses are not extended, “what is likely to happen is perhaps to see a vacuum of healthcare professionals who, instead of remaining in positions with unfavourable shifts, will instead want to go to day shifts. It risks creating a much larger hole than at present,” Bouchard said.

These bonuses would therefore be extended until June, the Treasury Board said. “A reassessment of the situation will be carried out next June, depending on the progress of the ongoing negotiations.”

Quebec also reiterated the fact that it wants to better remunerate the network’s psychologists, who are lagging behind the private sector.

Treasury Board President Sonia LeBel said “it is urgent to act, because summer is a critical period in the health network and we want to be ready for the start of the 2023 school year. These improved offers are a clear signal to the unions that we can and want to settle as soon as possible in order to take action.

“We all want the government to be an employer of choice. To achieve this, we must, together, step up the pace at the negotiating tables and actively participate in the reorganization of the organization of work, a central element of the current round of negotiations. I therefore hope to obtain a rapid and constructive return from the unions on these proposals.”

The inter-union common front, for its part, said that it took note of this improved offer and wanted to take the time to study it before commenting in more depth.

It says that “to have a complete portrait of this new government proposal, we will have to wait to see the content of the sectoral deposits which will be presented to the various tables over the next few weeks”.

“Sectoral” filings affect working conditions in specific sectors, for example in education and health.

Like LeBel, the common front, which is made up of the CSQ, the CSN, the FTQ and the APTS union federations, says it is ready to negotiate at any time. It has already denounced the fact that the pace of the negotiations has not held up.