Six lawyers — all women — working for the Ombudsman’s Office in the Montreal and Quebec City offices began an indefinite strike on Tuesday morning. They are members of Les Avocats et notaires de l’État québécois (LANEQ), a large union independent of the major labour federations. Their main demand concerns pay parity with public-sector attorneys. The union maintains that the Quebec government is preventing the Ombudsman’s Office from offering pay parity to its female attorneys. For its part, the employer says it is “committed to maintaining its services to the public and continues to monitor the situation closely to minimize the impact on citizens.” The Ombudsman handles complaints about the health and social services system, as well as those targeting Quebec government ministries and agencies. Negotiations are ongoing. This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on Sept. 8, 2026.
