On Monday, more than 450,000 public sector workers, including Montreal teachers, gathered on a one-day strike outside St. Monica Elementary School in Notre-Dame-de-Grâce in Quebec, Canada, for higher wages and adequate resources for their students.
The province's largest workers' federations have also announced that the strike would last three more days from November 21 to 23.
Montreal Teachers on Strike in Notre-Dame-de-Grâce
People participate in the "Every Child Matters" march to mark the first National Day for Truth and Reconciliation in Montreal, Canada on September 30, 2021. - The mobilization is part of the "Every Child Matters" movement to commemorate the victims of Residential Schools, the last of which closed in 1996 in Canada. Earlier this week, Catholic bishops apologized for the trauma, past and ongoing, and actions done towards indigenous people in Residential Schools.
Kindergarten teacher Lynn Watson was present on the strike with two dozen colleagues as drivers on Cavendish Blvd. who honked their horns to show support.
Watson said they were on a strike to press the provincial government for higher wages and better working conditions. However, they were more concerned about their students as they lacked educational resources.
"We're doing this more for the kids than for ourselves," Watson said. She added that the school has a lot of special-needs students, but they were not getting the support they need.
However, Sandra Banon, a Cycle 3 French teacher at St. Monica, complained about the increasingly heavy workload. She said they work 32 hours a week, but work hours add up to another 10 to 15 hours for additional time planning for classes and checking assignments and quizzes.
Veteran teacher Anne-Marie Yaworski held a sign that read, "Hands Off Our Pensions" at the Mackay Centre and Philip E. Layton School on Terrebonne St. with her colleague Jessie Sevigny.
Yaworski said that the government has removed her pension rights. She explained that Quebec plans to propose a minimum retirement age of 60 to be permitted to receive one's pension, even if one has already completed 35 years of service.
"I started working young, at 21, but I would be penalized if I took my pension at the age of 56," she said. Sevigny added that they deserve much more than they are getting.
Read Also: UK Museums Join Forces to Combat Climate, Biodiversity Crisis
Salary Issue of Quebec Teachers
According to Fédération autonome de l'enseignement (FAE), one in six Quebec teachers was nearly 20% behind the rest of Canada. The study revealed that a teacher with five years' experience earns an average of $62,820 compared with the Canadian average of $76,398.
However, Quebec offered a salary raise of 3% for the first year, followed by 1.5% for the next four years. On October 29, the common front rejected an offer by the Treasury Board of a base salary raise of 10.3% over five years and a one-time payment of $1,000.
"10.3 per cent over five years is an insult," Magali Picard, president of Federation des travailleurs et travailleuses du Quebec, said.
Members of the National Assembly offered themselves a pay raise of 30% in June, even though the provincial ethics commissioner warned them that the raise could open the door to potential conflicts of interest.
The common front attempts to close a three-year agreement with annual raises tied to the inflation rate - two percentage points above inflation in the first year or $100 more per week, whichever is higher, followed by three points higher in the second and four points higher in the third year.
Related Article: Oregon Teachers' Strike: Educators Walk Off Job Over Issues With Class Sizes, Salaries, Lack of Resources
