Quebec City, September 12, 2018 – Some 20 members of the Union of National Employees (UNE), a component of the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC), have been demonstrating since 6:30 this morning at the corner of Grande-Allée Boulevard and Bougainville Avenue. The members, who work for the National Battlefields Commission (NBC), are “the poor relations of the federal government.”
“It’s clear when we compare our positions to other similar jobs that we are the least well paid federal sector employees, even though the Plains of Abraham site at Battlefields Park is the highest-profile park in Canada,” says Stephen Ferland, a member of the PSAC/UNE bargaining team.
The protesters are handing out flyers outlining the negotiations that are underway. Apart from the issue of wages, on-call workers are not entitled to benefits and work/life balance is out of the question, because pregnant or nursing employees are not entitled to protective re-assignment.
The NBC manages the Plains of Abraham park, which is visited by over four million tourists a year and has an annual budget in excess of nine million dollars.
“We expect more consideration from the NBC,” adds Andrew Shaver, UNE’s National Executive Vice-President. “All we’re asking for is decent 21st-century working conditions.”
About UNE and PSAC
UNE is a PSAC component. It represents 22,000 members working in federal departments and agencies across Canada, including the approximately 40 members who work at the NBC each year. There are without a collective agreement since November 1, 2017.
PSAC represents more than 180,000 members in Canada. An FTQ affiliate, PSAC-Quebec has more than 40,000 members in the federal public sector, universities and the private sector.
Information:
Patrick Leblanc, PSAC-Quebec
leblanp@psac-PSAC.com | 514-706-5997