News

Longueuil – At the Québec government’s request, the APTS (Alliance du personnel professionnel et technique de la santé et des services sociaux) has agreed to extend the temporary agreement establishing a public float team until March 2026.

Since it was created in August 2024, only 8 APTS members have been sent as reinforcements to hard-hit  regions. This shows the limits of the public float team as a way of solving the labour shortage problem in Abitibi-Témiscamingue, the Côte-Nord, the Outaouais and elsewhere.

“We agreed to extend the project because we’re willing to cooperate. But this measure won’t solve anything,” said APTS president Robert Comeau. “It’s a makeshift solution, and its limitations are now obvious. If we really want to end the labour shortage, we need to improve working conditions so that people actually want to settle in these regions.”

In an attempt to improve the agreement, which currently applies only to social services, the APTS’s suggestion was to include other essential services like medical labs, or medical imaging services such as radiology, as well as regions where the labour shortage is especially acute such as Gaspésie / Îles-de-la-Madeleine, the Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean and the Bas-Saint-Laurent. The government refused to act on this suggestion.

The APTS also put forward  various measures to help short-staffed institutions: allowing voluntary displacements between institutions, making it easier to take leave without pay to go work in the North, and increasing isolation and remoteness premiums to encourage employees to work in Québec’s regions. None of these proposals were taken up by the government.

“Temporary measures won’t put an end to the labour shortage,” said APTS vice-president Joël Bélanger. “We need to set ourselves up for success. Our members are ready to do their part, but they have to be given the working conditions needed to make this happen.”

The APTS is calling on the Québec government to take its suggestions seriously and adopt long-lasting measures to meet the needs of the Abitibi-Témiscamingue, Outaouais, Côte-Nord, Chaudière-Appalaches, Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean and Bas-Saint-Laurent regions as well as Gaspésie / Îles-de-la-Madeleine.

The APTS

The APTS (Alliance du personnel professionnel et technique de la santé et des services sociaux) represents more than 65,000 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 all Quebecers, including diagnostic, rehabilitation, nutrition, psychosocial intervention, clinical support, and prevention services.