Quebec union dues survey: only members should decide

Three-quarters of Quebecers believe that union activities should be limited to defending their members. However, 68 per cent believe that it is up to members alone to decide what to do with their union dues.

These data emerge from a Léger survey conducted on behalf of the Centrale des syndicats du Québec (CSQ), in the context of the “reform of the union system” that the Minister of Labour, Jean Boulet, is due to introduce soon.

74 per cent of those interviewed agreed with the statement that “union activities should be limited to defending union members.”

Yet, at the same time, 68 per cent agreed with the statement that “it is up to the members of a union to freely decide what they want to do with their union dues.”

Through his reform, Minister Boulet says he wants to impose greater transparency and accountability on unions, particularly in terms of the use of union dues for purposes other than defending members.

In an interview, CSQ President Éric Gingras attempted to explain these statistics. “There’s a segment of the population that seems to believe we’re intervening on a package of issues that doesn’t meet the needs of our members. And that’s a bit of a misunderstanding, because when we ask them, the members choose. So, when, at the CSQ, for example, we talk about the provincial budget, pay equity, or violence in schools, we’re not talking about a collective agreement, but about issues that affect our members.”

“We have to talk about things that affect our members, but the members decide. And sometimes, the members decide that we’re not talking about the collective agreement, but about issues that affect them,” the union leader summarizes.

–This report by La Presse Canadienne was translated by CityNews