Latest news with #CSN
CTV News
4 days ago
- Health
- CTV News
Ambulance workers' strike: Quebec and the CSN cannot agree on concessions
Paramedics remain in negotiation with the Quebec government in attempts to find a new collective bargaining agreement. (Graham Hughes/ The Canadian Press) Intensive negotiations in July over the paramedic strike have stalled. The parties cannot agree on what concessions paramedics must make in order to obtain a better wage increase than what Quebec is currently offering. According to Jean Gagnon, representative of the pre-hospital sector at the FSSS-CSN, further months of strike action are to be expected. It should be noted that essential services to the public are being maintained, with the strike by some 3,300 paramedics who are members of unions affiliated with the CSN mainly taking the form of administrative pressure tactics. Quebec has already said it is prepared to agree to a 17.4 per cent wage increase over five years, as proposed by the union, in exchange for concessions for paramedics, who have been without a collective agreement since March 31, 2023. The CSN says it is willing to accept concessions, but it does not seem to agree with Quebec on what those concessions should be. 'We tried to hold a three-week 'blitz' of negotiations in July to reach a settlement, but it is clear that the parties were unable to do so. In other words, the people representing us at the negotiating table do not have the mandate to reach a tentative agreement that we can present to our members,' said Gagnon. He said negotiations will resume on September 5 and that 'there are still many issues to be clarified.' He hopes that those at the negotiating table will then have the necessary mandates to reach a tentative agreement. Paramedics plan to increase their visibility in the coming weeks. 'We will make sure we are heard until we get a settlement,' said Gagnon. This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on Aug. 4, 2025. The Canadian Press' health content is funded through a partnership with the Canadian Medical Association. The Canadian Press is solely responsible for editorial decisions.
BBC News
5 days ago
- General
- BBC News
Campaign launched to save Northampton community hubs
Campaigners are demanding the permanent reopening of community hubs that were closed without Against Cuts has urged West Northamptonshire Council to take over Semilong, Briar Hill, and Bellinge community hubs, which closed on 9 July but have since been reopened by volunteers with support from Morris, who previously managed the spaces in Northampton, said: "I want to use my time to support my staff team and our service users, not be constantly on my laptop chasing donations and meeting with different funding sources."The council said funding for the hubs had come to an end. The Community Engagement Hub Programme, operated by Community Spaces Northampton (CSN), was originally launched with grant funding to help tackle isolation following continued for more than 18 months using the charity's own limited resources after core support from West Northamptonshire Council issued a list of demands, including that the council permanently funded and ran the hubs and that staff made redundant were re-employed on fair terms. They also called for a worker- and union-led investigation into the financial handling of the hubs under Simpson, chair of Northampton Against Cuts, said: "Staff, volunteers and service users have a right to know what has happened to the funding for the hubs."A council spokesperson said: "The funding in question was from a grant allocated to support with the impact post-pandemic, focusing on mental wellbeing and tackling insolation. "This funding grant came to an end. However, since 2021, CNS have received over £153,000 in grant funding via various funding pots to support a number of programmes and initiatives." Follow Northamptonshire news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
CTV News
16-07-2025
- Business
- CTV News
Unions blast Quebec, Montreal Economic Institute for false Quebec strike numbers
The massive union confederation, CSN, is calling out the Montreal Economic Institute, the provincial labour minister and employer organizations for spreading false information about the number of strikes in Quebec in recent years. The Confédération des syndicats nationaux says that 'false data concerning labour disputes in Quebec' has been removed from Statistics Canada's site after the CSN questioned claims that strike and work stoppage numbers have skyrocketed in recent years. MEI senior policy analyst Gabriel Giguère wrote a report in May showing work stoppages skyrocketing from under 100 from 2017 to 2020 and then jumping to 759 in 2024. The MEI acknowledged that many organizations rely on StatsCan data as an authority. 'Statistics Canada remains Canada's source of reference and is relied upon by all research organizations across the nation,' said MEI communications vice-president Renaud Brossard. 'We acknowledge that the agency is now questioning and reviewing its own data following conversations with union officials.' The government of Quebec's site shows that there were 208 work stoppages in 2024. 'We found that those numbers a little bit strange, so I asked my people working on my research services at the CSN to check with StatCan, and they called them last week and they said, 'Oh, we do have communication problems between Quebec and us,' and they said 'you're right, our numbers are no good,'' said CSN vice president François Énault. Énault said the unions are frustrated because Labour Minister Jean Boulet has repeated the MEI numbers, even though the Quebec government's numbers are much lower. 'That's a bit strange because the number we have, these are the number from his ministery,' said Énault. 'I don't understand why he's using numbers from Stats Can when they have numbers from his own ministery.' The CSN said that Stats Can's data comes from Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC), which obtains its information from the Quebec Labour Ministry. How the numbers wound up so far from Quebec's numbers remains a mystery. 'We don't know,' said Énault. 'They just said they have a mistake and they do have a problem. They told us they have a communication problem.' The CSN said ESDC representatives confirmed that the data will be recalculated. 'They even suggested that we use data from the Quebec Ministry of Labour instead, which they consider more reliable. A simple check would have prevented the MEI from relaying false information,' the CSN said. Énault said that Quebec does have a higher unionized worker population than other Canadian provinces, at 40 per cent of the population. Also, the unions understand that strikes are, at times, unpopular. 'When we do strike, it's because we want to put some pressure on the government,' he said. 'You see, our goal it's to have a good collective agreement for our members, so they can spend money in Quebec and it's good for the economy. Don't forget, 95 per cent of all the collective agreements in Quebec. we have a deal with no strike or lock out, and it's a huge number.' The CSN wanted to set the record straight so anti-union groups do not use the erroneous information in the MEI report. 'No, there has not been an explosion in the number of labour disputes,' said Énault. 'No, 91 per cent of strikes in Canada do not take place in Quebec. Now we must return to the fundamental question: who benefits from restricting the right to strike? Certainly not workers! We must ask ourselves why it is important for employer lobbies to attack the right to strike by any means necessary, even if it means putting their credibility on the line with false data!'
Bloomberg
14-07-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Vitol Bolsters Metals Expansion With $240 Million Iron Ore Deal
Vitol Group signed its first multi-year financing deal for metals, as the energy trading giant ramps up its presence in the sector following a long stint out of the market. The trading house entered a $240 million prepayment facility with a subsidiary of CIA Siderúrgica Nacional SA for the delivery of 6 million tons of iron ore over four years, Vitol said Monday in a statement.
CTV News
07-07-2025
- Health
- CTV News
A 17.4% pay increase 'accessible' to paramedics, says Quebec
More than 3,000 paramedics in Quebec are on strike as a collective agreement remains unsigned in July 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Graham Hughes Quebec says that a 17.4 per cent pay increase is 'accessible in exchange for concessions' for paramedics who have been without a collective agreement for two years. Treasury Board President Sonia LeBel responded the day after some 3,300 paramedics, who are members of unions affiliated with the CSN, went on strike. The strike is primarily in the form of administrative pressure tactics, such as forms submitted to the employer, and will have little impact on the population. Thirty-five notices of indefinite strike action have been issued in several cities across Quebec by unions affiliated with the CSN's health and social services federation (FSSS). They hope to put pressure on the Treasury Board to reach an agreement on a new collective agreement. Salary is one of the main issues in dispute. In a news release on Sunday, FSSS-CSN Vice-President Lucie Longchamp questioned why, two years after the agreements expired, the government 'is still unable to bring to the bargaining table the same wage increases it negotiated with all its other employee groups.' On Monday morning, LeBel stated that 'having a bargaining mandate does not mean that the government has to accept all union demands.' 'It was clearly stated at the table that 17.4 per cent was achievable in exchange for concessions — as was the case for all the other unions that settled,' she said on social media platform X. The minister's office clarified that 'ambulance workers' unions will be treated fairly in line with what 99 per cent of public and parapublic sector employees have accepted so far.' 'The agreements reached, which provide for a 17.4 per cent wage increase, were made in exchange for concessions that will improve services to the public,' LeBel's office said in a statement sent to The Canadian Press. It mentioned that several negotiation dates are scheduled in the coming weeks and invited the unions 'to continue discussions at the table.' 'It is possible to reach a quick settlement,' it said. Other issues in dispute include compliance with work schedules and improvements to the pension plan, according to the CSN. Paramedics will also go on a rotating strike, with management personnel replacing them at their posts. The paramedics' pressure tactics are particularly affecting the regions of Abitibi-Témiscamingue, metropolitan Montreal, the Laurentians, Lanaudière, Montérégie, Estrie, Mauricie, the greater Quebec City area (including Charlevoix), Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean, North Shore, and Lower St. Lawrence. This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on July 7, 2025.
