Salary demands by Quebec medical specialists 'not reasonable,' Legault says
QUEBEC — The salary increases Quebec’s medical specialists are asking for are not reasonable, Premier François Legault said Wednesday.
On the same day as members of the Fédération des médecins spécialistes du Québec (FMSQ) announced it is examining a fresh round of “possible actions,” to pressure the government, Legault made it clear Quebec’s treasury has limits.
“What medical specialists are asking for as a salary increase is not reasonable,” Legault told reporters arriving for question period.
“Really not reasonable.”
Unlike Quebec’s
family doctors who came to a salary agreement with the government
before Christmas, the specialists have not signed any deal. A second round of negotiations between the specialists and the government is underway.
There have been reports the specialists were seeking a 17 per cent salary increase. The family doctors settled for a 14.5 per cent increase over five years.
But in a statement issued to the media Wednesday, the FMSQ, which represents 5,000 specialists, said its members are “exasperated” with the pace of the talks with Quebec. The statement followed a virtual meeting of the doctors Tuesday evening.
“Our last agreement expired March 31, 2023, which is almost three years ago,” FMSQ president Dr. Vincent Oliva said in the statement. “They can’t say we have not been patient.
“In 2025, we had to deal with constant assaults from the government against specialized medicine. We had hoped 2026 would bring a breath of fresh air (to the process).”
Oliva noted that when
Legault announced in January he would be stepping down
he promised to govern and exercise leadership.
Oliva said that means specialists expected the impasse with the government to disappear.
He then repeated the
standing demand of the FMSQ
that the government provide the necessary support and means to specialists to do their work.
But at the same time as Legault spoke, Quebec Treasury Board President France-Élaine Duranceau responded to the FMSQ’s fresh offensive.
She said their demands are too high.
“They are putting pressure on the government, but there are budget restrictions (in place) and there are results that we want to see out of all this,” Duranceau told reporters. “We’re continuing to talk. The idea is to not be at war, but we have to find a way to agree.”
There was no immediate response from the FMSQ to Legault’s comments, but the federation has announced plans to hold a special assembly of its members Thursday evening.