Over 65,000 teachers in Québec could remain on strike until Christmas if a deal isn’t reached, their union said on Sunday. The warning comes amid widespread labour unrest in the province, including nearly 570,000 workers on strike at the same time last week.
These collective actions are on the heels of the recent “summer of strikes,” that saw a number of labour actions take place, including the Hollywood writers’ and actors’ strikes, the United Auto Workers’ strike and a number of Starbucks strikes. In Canada, port workers in British Columbia, workers from Ontario’s public broadcaster, and city workers in Saint John also held strikes.
One of the reasons strikes seem to have increased in popularity and publicity is the record high support for workers’ unions. According to a recent Gallup poll, 71 per cent of Americans are supportive of labour unions — the highest rate since 1965. A recent Angus Reid survey found three-in-five Canadians believe unions have had a positive impact for workers.
