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Workers at hundreds of Quebec daycare centres go on strike

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More than 21,000 children will be impacted by day-long strike at Quebec early childhood education centres
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28 Oct 2017
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Thousands of Quebec parents will have to find alternative childcare this morning as workers at 400 non-profit daycare centres across the province are going on strike.

More than 21,000 children will be impacted by the day-long strike at early childhood education centres (CPEs) across Quebec.

Negotiations between the provincial government and the CSN, the labour federation representing about 11,000 workers at the CPEs, stalled last Thursday and have not picked up since.

Workers plan to protest at various places in Montreal and in Quebec City throughout the day.

In Montreal, more than 2,000 workers are expected to picket in front of about 107 facilities.

Trading blame

The CSN has accused Quebec of putting impossible demands on the workers.

Quebec's Ministry of Families wants to push the age of retirement from 60 to 61 or for employees to pay part of future deficits in the retirement system.

The union has also criticized the government for making budget cuts since 2014. It says those cuts have impacted the quality of services children receive.

The ministry, meanwhile, has blamed the union for "sticking to its positions," and said it was willing to negotiate "day and night" if necessary.

The workers are expected to go back to work on Tuesday to celebrate Halloween with the children.

It is difficult to know what will happen after that since the union has a rotating strike mandate.

-reprinted from CBC News

 

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