Dangerous increase in wage gap between APTS members and Québec employees as a whole

November 26, 2020

Longueuil – Figures published today by the ISQ (Institut de la statistique du Québec) leave no room for ambiguity: there is a dangerous increase in the wage gap between workers employed in the Québec public service and other workers. For the APTS (Alliance du personnel professionnel et technique de la santé et des services sociaux), this impoverishment is unacceptable and must be rapidly corrected.

“It’s revolting,” says APTS president Andrée Poirier. “Year after year, the government has been knowingly acting in a way that has made our members poorer. Now, at a time when our members are carrying the full weight of the system on their shoulders, measures to retain them and attract new employees are more important than ever. The figures we’ve seen today clearly demonstrate the need for a major catch-up pay increase. Immediate action is required to set the course straight – our public health and social services system is in jeopardy. Sonia Lebel and François Legault can’t go on ignoring our demands.”

Between 2019 and 2020, the gap in overall compensation rose from 6.2% to 9.2%, to the detriment of public service employees. The gap increased by 3.4 percentage points (to -7.5%) for professionals and 3.5 points (to -8.4%) for technicians. The APTS, in alliance with the FIQ, is suggesting a 7.4% catch-up pay increase over three years to narrow the gap.

“The government has been stubbornly refusing to address the wage gap since the very beginning of our contract talks,” says Andrée Poirier. “The impact of their blinkered attitude is dramatically apparent in every sector of the health and social services system. Recruitment is extremely difficult, work overload is getting worse, and employees’ physical and psychological health is suffering. Our 56,000 members are sick and tired of being disrespected by the Legault government. The government needs to act now to restore balance between public services and the private sector through a catch-up pay increase. It’s vital!”

The APTS

The APTS (Alliance du personnel professionnel et technique de la santé et des services sociaux) represents a total of 56,000 members who play a key role in ensuring that health and social services institutions run smoothly. Our members provide a wide range of services for the population as a whole, including diagnostic, rehabilitation, nutrition, psychosocial intervention, clinical support, and prevention services.