Quebec sends out contract offer for home day care workers

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Quebec has sent proposals to unions representing workers in home day care services, but it is not yet ready for CPE (Centers de la Petite Enfance) day care workers.

Sonia LeBel, president of the Treasury Board, announced this on Thursday in the National Assembly.

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“We are making the government's proposal for home kindergartens because all the demands of the union are now well defined and the government can respond to them as a whole,” he said.

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The request is about both workplace and money issues, says the Federation of Small Workers' Protection (FIPEQ), which represents the majority of workers in home day care services.

Childcare managers at home daycares are paid differently than hourly childcare workers. At home, service managers receive a subsidy from the Ministry of Families, which covers their remuneration and costs such as food and toys.

FIPEQ submitted its applications in September 2023 and has since been awaiting proposals from Quebec for both CPE members and home day care services. Agreements expire on March 31, 2023.

“We are happy to finally get an offer. It took a long time to get one. On the other hand, we are happy to offer, because there will be real negotiations. We will have the opportunity to exchange,” FIPEQ president Valerie Grenon said in an interview.

The story is similar to the Fédération de la santé et des services sociaux (FSSS), where Chantal Racicot, a representative for home day care, noted that “the Ministry of the Family seems to be sending us the document in good faith.”

The proposals for home nurseries come after FIPEQ filed a bad faith bargaining claim against the government on behalf of its members working in CPE.

The minister clarified on Thursday that the CPE will present its proposals to the unions “when they are ready”.

The minister declined to comment on the complaint against him, family minister Suzanne Roy and the employers, arguing it was a decision by the unions, a pressure tactic.

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