Despite two days of strikes on May 27 and May 28 Héma-Québec believes that
solidarity towards patients should take precedence

MONTREAL, May 27 /CNW Telbec/ - Héma-Québec is appealing to blood donors, asking them to come to the blood drive sites during the two strike days organized by three Montréal facility unions affiliated with the CSN on May 27-28. Héma-Québec would like to remind the public that all scheduled blood drives are being maintained.

"The long weekend for the Journée nationale des patriotes, combined with the exceptionally good weather of the past few days, has resulted in a reduction in the number of people who have come to our blood drive sites to donate blood. Héma-Québec is asking the public to give blood generously: 1000 donations are needed each day to meet the hospitals' needs," said Manon Pepin, Vice-President - Public Affairs and Marketing.

"Héma-Québec would like to express its disappointment with respect to this obstacle, which essentially concerns the salaries. A negotiating blitz last night led us to believe that we would manage to reach an agreement in principle," Manon Pepin added.

Contrary to the claims of the CSN, the union demand exceeds simple equity with the remuneration provided to Québec government employees. "The union's demand would be equivalent to granting salary increases of 15% over 5 years. This demand far surpasses the parameters for 5% salary increases over five years offered by the Conseil du trésor," responded Héma-Québec's spokesperson.

Héma-Québec would like to point out that this conflict does not affect all of its personnel, but only those employees represented by three unions out of nine, concerning 375 people of the 1,300 Héma-Québec employees. All of the personnel required will be present to welcome blood donors at the mobile blood donation units and the Globule Blood Donor Centres. Blood drives scheduled in the Capitale-Nationale, Chaudière-Appalaches, Mauricie, Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean, Côte-Nord, Bas-Saint-Laurent and Gaspésie regions will not be affected since they are organized with personnel from other unions.

About Héma-Québec

Héma-Québec aims to efficiently provide adequate quantities of safe, optimal blood components, substitutes, human tissues and cord blood to meet all Quebecers' needs; provide and develop expertise along with specialized and innovative services and products in the fields of transfusion medicine and human tissue transplantation.

Héma-Québec counts 1,300 employees, some 2,000 blood drives and more than 300,000 blood donors every year, 16,000 partner volunteers and more than 485,000 blood products annually delivered to hospitals in Quebec to fulfill patients' needs.

Give blood. Give life.

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For further information: Manon Pepin, Vice-President, Public Affairs and Marketing, [phone], [email protected]; Source: Laurent Paul Ménard, Director - External Communications