Quebec unions affiliated with the FIQ denounce organizational violence targeting healthcare professionals
The presidents of the three unions affiliated with the FIQ in the region of the Capitale-Nationale, Nancy Hogan, President of the Syndicat interprofessionnel du CHU de Québec (FIQ-SICHU), Patricia Lajoie, President of the Syndicat des professionnelles en soins de la Capitale-Nationale (FIQ-SPSCN) and Jonathan Tremblay, Interim President of the Syndicat interprofessionnel de la santé de l’IUCPQ (FIQ-SIIQ), filed three union grievances today to denounce the psychological and organizational harassment at the CHU de Québec, the CIUSSS de la Capitale-Nationale and the IUCPQ toward healthcare professionals.
“For too long now, employers have been repeatedly forcing our members to do mandatory overtime to the extent that it’s become their main management method. And yet, it should only be used for urgent or exceptional situations,” stated the union spokespeople. The unions consider it to be organizational violence because it’s been happening for so long on a daily basis; healthcare professionals are continuously asked and forced to do overtime.
“As we approach the province-wide 24 hours for the safety and quality of care organized by the FIQ, from Friday November 15 at 4 p.m. to Saturday, November 16 at 4 p.m., healthcare professionals in the Quebec region have had enough and want a normal work day,” said the presidents. The provincial day without MOT on April 8 showed that unions were right, employers can limit the amount of mandatory overtime they give out. However, it only lasted a day, as employers returned to their poor management habits the very next day.
In addition to the abusive use of mandatory overtime, otherwise known as MOT, healthcare professionals are often obliged to care for too many patients due to un-replaced staff absences, or obliged to carry out tasks that fall under another job title. The unions believe these management methods have to stop because they are harmful to healthcare professionals and lower the quality and safety of patient care.
The three union grievances are supported by hundreds of individual grievances filed by unions regarding mandatory overtime.