Institutional pharmacists in Quebec say they are angry at the government’s inaction in negotiations to renew their labour agreement, and have voted 99 per cent in favour of a mandate to implement pressure tactics when they deem it appropriate. Nearly 1,200 pharmacists working in hospitals, CHSLDs and seniors’ homes attended a meeting on Wednesday evening to give the mandate to the board of directors of the Association des pharmaciens des établissements de santé du Québec (APES). As with other health care workers, pharmacists cannot take measures that would impact the health of citizens. They say they have come up with a plan that could still attract the government’s attention. The APES says it still hopes to reach an agreement by the holidays, but if no progress is made at the negotiating table, institutional pharmacists will stop participating in the Digital Health Record (DSN) for all prescription-related matters. After postponing the launch of the DSN last fall, Santé Québec announced on Wednesday that the pilot projects for its digital shift would be rolled out next spring. Linda Vaillant, pharmacist and executive director of APES, explains that in their work, institutional pharmacists say they try to counter pharmacy expenses by implementing solutions to avoid wasting medications that are about to expire or by recovering expensive medication vials. All these protocols could be abandoned, she adds, as Quebec risks seeing its bill inflated. In less than 24 hours, pressure tactics could be activated, Vaillant said, noting that institutional pharmacists are angry at the government’s lack of consideration. Their labour agreement expired nearly three years ago, and negotiations are at a standstill on important issues. The APES submitted its demands two years ago. “Pharmacists are ready to take action because they are fed up,” said Vaillant. “Not because they enjoy doing so, but because they feel that they are not being heard and are hardly respected. When you work with a bunch of professionals around you who have all reached an agreement, who all have the new bonuses, the new network clauses, you do the same thing as them, you have on-call duties, you have night shifts, you are on call, but your bonuses are lower than everyone else who has settled the issue. No one seems to care about that, even though our salaries are already much lower than in the private sector. It’s insulting. It insults our members, and they’re really fed up.” A costly shortage The pharmacists say there are three main issues at the bargaining table in the context of the staff shortage. There must be attractive measures for young pharmacists completing their university education, competitive salaries and conditions to retain pharmacists who are approaching retirement. However, they say these issues have still not been addressed, and the employer’s representatives do not seem to have the necessary mandates to discuss them. Two weeks ago, APES requested the intervention of Treasury Board President France-Élaine Duranceau and Health Minister Christian Dubé to reach an agreement before Christmas, but nothing has changed. APES says it seems the ministers have not allowed their negotiators’ mandates to be broadened. The association points out that the health care system spends huge amounts of money on independent labour to compensate for the shortage of pharmacists in the public system, as well as reducing services. This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on Dec. 11, 2025. The Canadian Press’s health coverage is supported by a partnership with the Canadian Medical Association. The Canadian Press is solely responsible for this journalistic content.
