This exchange captured in the aisles of the Paul-Aimé Paiement library on Thursday clearly showed how happy these two women, like thousands of users, were to be back in their library after more than three and a half months of strike action.
Out of attachment or driven by a bit of nostalgia, I chose to go to this branch to mark the reopening.
This establishment is the one from my childhood. The Charlesbourg library before it was named Paul-Aimé Paiement in 2012. The pre-municipal merger library where my mother introduced my sister and me to the pleasure of reading books.
It was good Thursday to see people going out with their arms full of books, the parking lot overflowing, the busy youth section on this rainy morning.
The youth section was very popular on this rainy afternoon. (Frédéric Matte/Le Soleil)
Yes, it was like a celebration for the population happy to find their libraries and special activities whose holding had been uncertain since the labor dispute started on March 1st.
Nearly four months of closure will have left their mark in this labor dispute like no other.
Are there any lessons to be learned from this strike, which lasted much longer than initially thought? Too long.
In recent days, both the United Food and Commercial Workers Union (UFCW) and the employer, the Canadian Institute of Quebec (ICQ), have not wanted to revisit the conflict. All clearly prefer to look forward.
However, an assessment is necessary despite everything, as this 106-day strike stood out on several levels which give food for thought.
An atypical strike
From the beginning of the conflict, on March 1st, we could feel it: this strike was going to be complicated and a little hard to understand for ordinary people.
Firstly, unlike the majority of conflicts which oppose two well-defined parties, the employees and the boss, this negotiation had the air of a “double negotiation”.
On the one hand, the ICQ negotiated with the union, but also with the City of Quebec.
Since 2013, the ICQ, a non-profit cultural organization founded in 1848, has managed all libraries in the territory of Quebec. Before the Labeaume administration entrusted all 26 establishments, the ICQ managed half of the branches.
The ICQ was therefore the boss in this negotiation, but the City, as the main financial backer, was also in the union’s sights.
Politicization of the conflict
By having the Canadian Institute of Quebec as employer, but the City behind the purse strings, it became complex to understand who does what and who is accountable for what.
Regularly questioned by employees, opposition parties and the population, the mayor of Quebec Bruno Marchand had no other choice than to repeat “to be in support, but that the City was not at the negotiating table “.
In terms of political communication, there was an impression of inaction on the part of the mayor, reinforced by the relative silence of the ICQ, which was content with laconic press releases at each stage of the negotiations.
A poster in front of the Gabrielle-Roy library at the end of March after a month of strike. (Caroline Grégoire/Le Soleil Archives)
Union members divided
I hope that the return to work will be harmonious for unionized employees. Because we must admit that the settlement of June 14 occurred against a backdrop of division.
On April 26, the employer’s third offer was rejected by 52%.
On June 14, employees voted in favor of the new employment contract, but again at… 52%.
Might as well say a handful of votes. A post mortem is imposed on union leaders who have never really succeeded in rallying a strong majority to the agreement which includes in particular a 4% increase in the salary scale with retroactive payment and the advancement of one step for each employee.
Unwavering support for the strikers
The conflict was also highly publicized. Someone pointed out to me how rare it is to see a strike affecting only 240 people have such public resonance.
This is largely due to the popularity of library workers among the public.
From the start of the conflict, the salary conditions of some clerks were enough to strike the imagination with starting salaries approaching $17 per hour in some cases.
Personally, I haven’t heard anyone criticize the strikers, even from people who were eager for the strike to end.
More than books
Finally, this atypical strike will also have made it possible to measure, or confirm, the extent to which libraries are more than places to borrow books.
In cold weather as well as during recent heatwaves, libraries are places of welcome, crossroads of community and social life in a neighborhood.
You can learn cooking, computers, rent musical instruments and attend conferences.
This is why we want diverse, creative and open libraries.
Literally as well as figuratively.
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