Sante Quebec: Unions unhappy, APTS demonstrates [Video]

About 100 members of the Alliance du personnel professionnel et technique de la santé et des services sociaux (APTS) chanted “Santé Québec, it’s not a gift” as they demonstrated outside the offices of the new agency in Montreal on Monday morning.

The arrival of Santé Québec, which is now responsible for coordinating the operations of the health-care network, has sparked discontent among the major union organisations.

The protesters denounced the establishment of the new government corporation, which was made official on Sunday. APTS members wrote down their wishes for the health-care network — starting with the desire that it remain public — on wrapped Christmas presents.

Speaking on behalf of all the city’s sectors, APTS national representative for the North Island of Montreal, Sabrina Caty, read out some of these requests, including decentralising the network, respecting workers’ autonomy and better valuing the profession.

“We want our employers to be human. We’re tired of useless bureaucracy, …