Quebec reaches tentative deal with health-care professionals

An agreement in principle reached between Quebec and the Fédération interprofessionnelle de la santé (FIQ) will “change the face” of the provincial health-care network in the years to come, Treasury Board president Sonia Lebel predicted on Wednesday.

An earlier agreement with the FIQ, which represents 76,000 nurses and other health-care professionals, was rejected by union delegates in November.

This latest deal was accepted on Tuesday by 82 per cent of delegates but now must be voted on by rankand-file members.

Lebel said a major change in the agreement would see workloads reduced by the addition of 1,500 full-time jobs.

In a communiqué to the membership, the FIQ said 1,000 jobs would be created in long-term care centres (CHSLDS) and 500 more in medical and surgical centres.

The union added the agreement included “targets” for reducing nurse-patient ratios in CHSLDS in order to provide better care for patients.

Lebel said the government will issue a directive to reduce the amount of work given to private nursing-placement agencies.

The agreement includes a letter of understanding concerning the objective of reducing overtime as well as an increase in bonus payments.

On Tuesday night, FIQ president Nancy Bédard described the agreement as a turning point in the organization of health care, saying the gains would “profoundly change the harmful culture of the last few years, which has largely contributed to the deterioration of working conditions.”