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CTV News
2 hours ago
- Business
- CTV News
Quebec residential construction workers striking for ‘equal pay for equal work'
A construction worker attaches a basket on a crane as they work on the rooftop of a residential apartment building in Levis, Que. on Tuesday, May 20, 2025. Residential construction workers are on strike. (Jacques Boissinot/The Canadian Press) Nearly 1,000 workers from the Alliance syndicale de la construction demonstrated in front of the Association des professionnels de la construction et de l'habitation du Québec (APCHQ) offices to mark the first week of strikes in the residential sector Wednesday. The event was peaceful, with the slogan 'equal pay for equal work' illustrating their main demand: that the 60,000 residential construction workers receive the same wage increases as construction workers in other sectors, who have all already settled. The workers made themselves heard with trumpets, horns, percussion and music blaring from loudspeakers. Some of the signs had humorous tones, with slogans like 'if you don't want to pay me, don't make me saw' in French ('si tu veux pas me payer, fais-mois pas scier'). Many workers arrived from the regions by chartered bus; streets had to be closed and bus stops moved due to the size of the protest. After a week on strike, the workers did not seem discouraged. They gave a standing ovation to the spokesperson for the union alliance, Alexandre Ricard, president of FTQ-Construction. 'It's not true that we're going to be blamed for the increase in housing prices in recent years. There are several factors that make housing expensive today. We are just one factor. We're not the ones who caused these prices to rise,' said Ricard. 'I see lots of contractors attracting (residential) workers by offering them commercial conditions—proof that our demands are fair and reasonable," he told the protesters. It should be noted that, unlike in other sectors of the economy, construction workers do not receive a retroactive wage increase on the expiry date of the previous collective agreement when it is not renewed. They, therefore, lose money. Their agreement expired on April 30. APCHQ and Minister Boulet The APCHQ commented on the demonstration. 'As the critical date of July 1 approaches, the Association des professionnels de la construction et de l'habitation du Québec is growing impatient with the union alliance's inaction and hopes that the current negotiations will quickly lead to an agreement,' it said. Ricard responded in turn that, 'Yes, there are discussions at the table. But we need to move forward.' 'It makes no sense to drag this out, because we don't have the right to retroactivity. In the meantime, we are losing money. In the meantime, we also have no anti-strike-breaker law, which is totally unreasonable and also causes friction,' he said. The anti-strike-breaker provisions of the Labour Code do not apply to the construction industry. When questioned in Quebec City, Labour Minister Jean Boulet reiterated his offer to resort to arbitration. Under this process, an arbitrator, who is a neutral third party, determines the content of the collective agreement, thereby ending the labour dispute. However, both parties must agree to this. The APCHQ has said it is willing to accept, but not the Alliance syndicale, which wants to negotiate its own working conditions. Minister Boulet himself pointed out that several construction sites were still operating despite the strike. 'Workers can continue to work. Workers are at work,' he said. He noted that there had been 'incidents here and there where police intervention was required,' but the situation has calmed down. This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French June 4, 2025. Lia Lévesque, The Canadian Press
CBC
28-05-2025
- Business
- CBC
Workers in residential construction sector now on unlimited strike
Workers in Quebec's residential construction began an unlimited strike at midnight after failing to reach a deal with a group that represents residential developers in the province. The two sides held talks on Tuesday, but failed to strike a deal to avoid the work stoppage. The strike affects projects across Quebec for single-family homes, townhouses and residential buildings with six floors or less, excluding the basement. Projects for buildings with at least seven floors are not affected by this strike. The same goes for renovation, modification or maintenance projects paid for by a property owner. The main sticking point in the negotiations is compensation, with the unions seeking salary increases of 22 per cent over four years for heavy construction and 24.3 per cent for light construction. The workers are part of an alliance made up of five unions: FTQ-Construction, the Syndicat québécois de la construction, the Conseil provincial du Québec des métiers de la construction (International), CSD-Construction and CSN-Construction. The developers are part of the Association des professionnels de la construction et de l'habitation du Québec (APCHQ). The unions represent 200,000 workers, but less than 20 per cent of them are in the residential construction sector, according to recent data from the province's construction commission. The union members who work in the commercial, industrial and institutional construction sectors — which make up the vast majority of construction projects in the province — already reached deals of their own in March. The salary increases in that deal totalled 22 per cent over four years, on par with what the workers in the residential sector are asking for. The alliance representing the five unions is expected to hold a news conference at 10 a.m. on Wednesday.
CTV News
27-05-2025
- Business
- CTV News
Parties to meet as threat of residential construction strike looms in Quebec
Another meeting is scheduled for Tuesday afternoon between the Alliance syndicale de la construction and the Association des professionnels de la construction et de l'habitation du Québec (APCHQ), as an unlimited strike threatens the residential construction industry. Monday evening, the APCHQ announced that it had presented 'a new increased exploratory offer' to the Alliance syndicale and was awaiting a response, in the hope of breaking the deadlock. Tuesday morning, the Alliance indicated that the offer from the APCHQ was not in writing, and the situation has not changed. The strike call, slated to start at 12:01 a.m. on Wednesday, remains in effect. The Alliance notes that workers have already begun mobilizing, and it anticipates that a strike will be called unless the parties reach common ground at their meeting on Tuesday afternoon. The Alliance syndicale includes all the construction unions, including FTQ-Construction, the Syndicat québécois de la construction, the Conseil provincial du Québec des métiers de la construction (international), the CSD-Construction and the CSN-Construction. It represents a total of 200,000 workers. This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on May 27, 2025.
