02) LABOUR GEARS UP FOR A FIGHT IN QUEBEC
PV Montreal Bureau
Quebec’s labour movement is gearing up for a big show-down against austerity, if the rhetoric at a mid-February special meeting opened to the public of the Central council of Metropolitan Montreal of the CSN, is any indication.
The meeting was the third general assembly of union militants held by the CSN since September, and took place in the context of the resistance against austerity measures adopted by the Liberal government.
One of those measures is Bill 10 which was just adopted a few days before. This legislation was initially proposed as a cost cutting measure combining different components of Health and Social Services administration by the current health minister, Dr Gaétan Barrette, a star candidate of the right-populist Coalition Avenir du Québec in the second-last election, who switched to the Liberals last year.
In fact, nobody other than the Liberals seemed to know the purpose of the convoluted Bill 10, the so-called “Barrette revolution”. Then, as the bill neared the end of the parliamentary cycle of discussion, the Liberals introduced amendments which made clear the true reason for the legislation.
After a few upset and rather loud-voiced visitors interrupted business, the National Assembly approved the Bill by a 79 to 38 vote, following a marathon debate from 10 am Friday to midnight Saturday.
The poison pill among the amendments was new wording combining healthcare workers formerly under separate organizations. That means the different trade unions will be forced to fight it out one against another for membership during the negotiations.
Suddenly the purpose of the Bill became clear. The same strategy was used by the Charest Liberal government to break the Front Commun in 2005. The resulting disunity put a wrench into the wheels of labour militancy in Quebec, from which the trade union movement only recently recovered. The Quebec Student Strike three years ago was very helpful in that recovery.
The spirit of that 2012 magnificent mobilization was very much alive in the room tonight. In fact a criticism would be that, of a packed room of over 100 union militants, only one voice came from a private sector local. The rest came from the public sector, especially trade unionists in colleges and hospitals.
After passing a motion giving guests the right to speak, Dominique Daigneault, General Secretary of the Central Montreal Council, turned to the main resolution and proposal: economic disruption and labour action against austerity.
The trade unionists spoke forcefully in support of the action plan, and many proposed longer, more targeted, and broader activities. This stage of the campaign will culminate with a big May 1 action which will include economic disruptions and strikes where it is possible.
While all the attention was somewhat detail-oriented (including coming up with a song for the protest movement, which won strong applause), some proposals addressed deepening labour’s programme of demands against austerity, such as a guaranteed minimum income and a general raise in worker’s wages as one of its stated goals. Several other suggestions were made, and in the end a strong plan against austerity was adopted.
The question remains if the labour militants can make this fightback a campaign for their whole membership and move the entire union movement into mass, united action. Already there have been a number of actions, including occupations of MNA offices in January by labour leaders. And there is concern about the unity of the Common Front now, following Bill 10.
On the other hand, surveys show the “Barrette revolution” is by far the most unpopular of the austerity measures, which have seen tens of thousands of municipal and child care workers, as well as students, in the streets over pensions and other cuts.
Later this year public sector workers will hit the negotiating table. A lot is at stake and the current Liberal government is dedicated to destroying the entire Quebec model of the social welfare state. This what is really behind the attack on childcare.
It is of course a great outrage for working families and all Quebecers, but the attack is much more serious. It is the sharp tip of the knife that big business wants to try to utilize, eviscerating the fundamental principle of universality in social programmes.
The energy in the hall, however, was alert to this attack and combatant. While organized on a Montreal level, the meeting will have national implications.
Of course, there was an elephant in the room the whole time. In a discussion of economic disruption, every action and strategy the meeting considered – past, present, and future – could be considered illegal under Harper’s new federal-level legislation, Bill C-51.
But if the vision and unity shown tonight are any indicator, the "non-commissioned officers" of the Quebec labour movement are willing to give capital a run for its money, and take on the big ticket struggles.
(The above article is from the March 1-15, 2015 issue of People's Voice, Canada's leading socialist newspaper. Articles can be reprinted free if the source is credited. Subscription rates in Canada: $30/year, or $15 low income rate; for U.S. readers - $45 US per year; other overseas readers - $45 US or $50 CDN per year. Send to People's Voice, c/o PV Business Manager, 706 Clark Drive, Vancouver, BC, V5L 3J1.)