Ottawa shares asbestos reports after union concerns at Guy-Favreau

People are walking through the Guy-Favreau complex in downtown Montreal. Photo taken on Dec. 2, 2011. (The Canadian Press/Ryan Remiorz)

The federal government is offering reassurances about the possible presence of asbestos at the Guy-Favreau Complex in Montreal.

Analysis reports have now been provided to the unions that requested them, as well as to local workplace health and safety committees.

“The reports were provided to the union representatives on local health and safety committees over the last few weeks, and Public Services and Procurement Canada also granted (on Friday) direct access to these documents to the unions that asked for them,” the department said.

Last week, the Public Service Alliance of Canada’s Quebec region criticized what it called a lack of transparency from employers because it had not received the analysis reports on potential asbestos in the major federal building in downtown Montreal.

Members had expressed concern for their health.

Although the federal government had already said recent tests showed no asbestos, the union refused to take that on faith and insisted on seeing the full reports.

On Wednesday, PSAC-Quebec confirmed it had received the documents. The union’s regional executive vice-president for Quebec, Sébastien Paquette, welcomed what he described as a “change in attitude” from the federal government.

Since the union went public last week, “we’ve had meetings; we’ve had documents sent to us and, at first glance, it seems positive,” Paquette said. He added that the documentation is extensive and is now being reviewed by union experts.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on April 22, 2026.