2023-09-25 01:55:52
Quebec intends to legislate this fall for more flexibility in the construction sector, but this may not go through like a letter in the mail. If the approach delights a group of entrepreneurs, it worries unions.
For us, the speech of the CAQ and the Prime Minister is the same as that of the employers’ side, explains Éric Boisjoly, general director of the Alliance pour la construction FTQ-Construction.
Can the government take responsibility and start by planning the work correctly instead of putting pressure on everyone?
The Prime Minister, François Legault, asked his Minister of Labor to negotiate with the unions, but the end of October seems to have already been set as the deadline for submitting the text of the reform.
Earlier Sunday, in an interview with Behind the scenes of powerFrançois Legault once again pleaded for more flexibility and more versatile workers.
If we were able with the CCQ to seek more flexibility, we think that we could achieve an efficiency gain of almost 10%, so that means 10%, indirectly, more workers.
This is the equivalent of a billion dollars in savings or in concrete terms, it would be 26 more primary schools that we could build annually, adds Guillaume Houle of the Quebec Construction Association.
According to this group of entrepreneurs, there are 26 professional qualifications in Quebec for different construction trades, while there are only seven in Ontario.
For example, a tiler who would have come to a construction site who would have already done his work and who would have to leave to go to another site. Well, if work needs to be corrected or if there have been breakages, for example. Subsequently, we must wait for this same tiler who is perhaps at the other end of the region to come back to do the work rather than using the labor available on the sites, specifies Mr. Houle.
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The reform desired by Minister Boulet plans in particular to facilitate the recognition of the acquired skills and skills of workers who are not currently in the construction industry.
As early as 2021, the two largest construction union organizations have expressed their fears about the devaluation of professional training and diplomas – the preferred route to entering the industry.
In addition to the decompartmentalization of professions, Minister Boulet sees his reform from the angle of more versatile workers, who will be able to carry out tasks currently assigned to professions other than their own. He also sees it as a way to reduce delays on construction sites.
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Unions fear a decline in competence. (Archive photo)
Photo : Radio-Canada / Ivanoh Demers
Just like the Alliance pour la construction FTQ-Construction, the Quebec Provincial Council for Construction Trades (International) has already expressed concerns about this reform.
However, he says he is ready to work on the issue of versatility with the government, the CCQ and employers’ associations.
With information from Raphaëlle Drouin
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