As part of its negotiations with public sector unions, Quebec wants to extend the work week for some employees in the health and social services network from 35 to 37.5 hours.
About 10 job titles would be affected, such as medical technology externs, criminologists, health technicians working in medical laboratories, medical imaging technicians and others, said Josée Fréchette, first vice-president of the APTS (Alliance du personnel professionnel et technique de la santé et des services sociaux) in an interview on Friday.
Fréchette recalled that there was a scarcity of manpower in the health and social services sector and that existing workers were often exhausted.
“For us, this is not an improvement. We are in contradiction because the government wants to attract, retain people and provide good conditions and, at the same time, we increase the hours of work,” he said.
In its offer, Quebec also wants to “redefine what constitutes overtime,” she noted.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on April 14, 2023.