The historic Quebec strike of 2015 achieved only modest wage gains that favored the impoverishment of healthcare workers, a concession on pensions, insignificant improvement in working conditions and did nothing to prevent the deterioration of public services. Photo: Manuel's Blog Nearly half a million Quebec workers staged a provincial-wide general strike on December 9, including 400,000 who were members of a Common Front which represented all major trade union federations in Quebec including healthcare workers, teachers and government workers, plus 34,000 teachers in a separate union, the Fédération autonome de l'enseignement (FAE). The general strike became the climax of the anti-Austerity movement, which had begun in the spring when 30,000 students went on a two-week strike termed Printemps 2015, (Maple Spring). The austerity budget of Quebec Premier Couillard Liberal government cut public health spending by 30 per cent along with deep cuts to the education budget and public services. During the summer of 2015 with the Liberal government showing no signs of modifying their austerity roadmap, and continuing to demand major concessions on wages, pensions, and working conditions, contract negotiations with the unions hit a stalemate. Angry with the stalled negotiations, union workers gave the leadership a six day rotating strike mandate to challenge among other things the Quebec's public sector wage freeze and cuts to frontline services. Read the full article