Coalition against cuts in Quebec education network grows, petition nears 150,000 signatures

Éric Gingras, president of the Centrale des syndicats du Québec (CSQ), photographed during a press conference on January 8, 2024, in Montreal. (Ryan Remiorz/The Canadian Press)

Discontent over budget cuts in education is continuing steadily as the coalition grows and the petition on the National Assembly website nears 150,000 signatures.

New groups have just joined the coalition “Ensemble, unis pour l’école” (Together, united for school), the Centrale des syndicats du Québec (CSQ) announced on Monday. They include the Quebec English School Boards Association (QESBA), the Quebec Intellectual Disability Society, and the Coalition de parents d’enfants à besoins particuliers du Québec, among others.

Employers are finding themselves in the same coalition as unions representing teachers, support staff, and education professionals, as well as parents of children.

“The goal is to do something that has never been done before: bring all these people together and send a message that cuts to education cannot be tolerated,” said CSQ President Éric Gingras in an interview on Monday.

At the end of the school year, Quebec announced that the network would have to reduce its spending by $570 million.

Quebec denies that these are real cuts, saying it is simply slowing the pace of growth in the education budget, which will increase by 5 per cent instead of 7 per cent, as in previous years.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on July 7, 2025.