The union representing workers at the Integrated Health and Social Services Centre (CISSS) of Montérégie-Est has formally notified its employer, asking it to suspend the privatization of the laundry at the Pierre-Boucher hospital in Longueuil.
The CISSS de la Montérégie-Est announced in the spring its desire to entrust the laundry to a private supplier in the hope of reducing costs, while the union expressed its opposition to this privatization project.
In this case, the collective agreement stipulates that the union must receive information relating to the project to enable it to seek a public alternative, an obligation that the employer allegedly failed to respect.
The formal notice sent by bailiff to the CISSS de la Montérégie-Est follows a petition with more than 1,070 signatures filed Thursday at the office of Lionel Carmant, Minister responsible for Social Services.
“We believe that the CISSS was not sufficiently diligent in its financial analysis, given that this is a contract worth more than $15 million in public money over 4 years,” said Nathalie Bruneau, vice-president of occupational health and safety at the STT of the CISSS de la Montérégie-Est-CSN, on Monday.
“We would like to propose a laundry project that is a public and financially viable alternative to the CISSS, but we are still waiting for the necessary information, hence the formal notice,” added Ms. Bruneau.
