The Confédération des syndicats nationaux (CSN; Confederation of National Trade Unions) is the second largest trade union federation in

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

by membership.

History

It was founded in Hull in 1921 as the ''Confédération des travailleurs catholiques du Canada'' (Catholic Workers Confederation of Canada). It became the CSN only in 1960 when it became secular. The CSN developed a close relationship with the Quebec Liberal Party and worked together to reform Québec's labor law in 1965 to extend collective bargaining to government employees. However, by the late 1960s the CSN had fallen out of favor with the provincial government as it became radicalized and threw its support behind social movements. In 1971, the three leading Quebec unions, the CSN, the CEQ teacher's union, and the Québec Federation of Labour ( FTQ) voted to form the Common Front, a syndicalist organization demanding a unified minimum wage for their 250,000 members. When negotiations failed between the Common Front and the Liberal government, the unions launched the largest general strike in Canadian history. When the strike's leaders were jailed for defying orders to return to work, the strike lost momentum and the Common Front broke apart. The CSN first formally supported Quebec sovereignty in May 1990. It had, however, been associated with the sovereignty movement long before. In both the 1973 and 1976 provincial elections, the CSN, without formally endorsing the

Parti québécois The Parti Québécois (; ; PQ) is a sovereignist and social democratic provincial political party in Quebec, Canada. The PQ advocates national sovereignty for Quebec involving independence of the province of Quebec from Canada and establishin ...

, let it be known that it considered the PQ to be most closely aligned with workers' interests. During the

1980 Quebec referendum The 1980 Quebec independence referendum was the first referendum in Quebec on the place of Quebec within Canada and whether Quebec should pursue a path toward sovereignty. The referendum was called by Quebec's Parti Québécois (PQ) government, whi ...

, the CSN supported a yes vote on "sovereignty-association".

Structure

The CSN is characterized by decentralized administration: local unions are organized into federations by sector of activity and regional councils, and are very independent from the central organization. It is also the most politically active trade union in Quebec. The Confederation currently has about 300,000 members, distributed evenly between men and women, and between the private and public sectors.

Marc Laviolette Marc Laviolette (born c. 1950s in Ottawa, Ontario) was Mayor of Ottawa for much of 1991. He was declared Mayor on 18 February 1991 after Jim Durrell resigned to become president of the fledgling Ottawa Senators ice hockey team. Laviolette had b ...

was replaced as president in 2002 by Claudette Carbonneau.

Louis Roy Louis Roy (20 July 1959 – disappeared 23 June 2000), better known as "Mélou", was a Canadian outlaw biker and gangster, said to have been the richest Hells Angel in Quebec. Biography Roy was born and grew up in Trois-Rivières. He was a memb ...

, Roger Valois, and

Denise Boucher Denise Boucher (born December 12, 1935) is a Canadian writer living in Quebec. Biography The daughter of Alexandre Boucher, police chief, and Justine Bélair, she was born in Victoriaville, Quebec. She received a teaching certificate from the Éco ...

are the 1st, 2nd and 3rd vice-presidents, respectively. Lise Poulin is the secretary and Pierre Patry is the treasurer. The Montreal Central Council of the CSN endorsed

Québec solidaire Québec solidaire (QS; ) is a democratic socialist and sovereigntist political party in Quebec, Canada. The party and media outlets in Canada usually use the name "Québec solidaire" in both French and English, but the party's name is sometimes ...

for the 2007 Quebec election.

Presidents

*Pierre Beaulé (1921–1933) *Osias Filion (1933) *René Bénard (1934) *Alfred Charpentier (1935–1946) *Gérard Picard (1946–1958) *Roger Mathieu (1958–1960) *

Jean Marchand Jean Marchand, (December 20, 1918 – August 28, 1988) was a French Canadian public figure, trade unionist and politician in Quebec, Canada. Life and career During the 1949 Asbestos Strike in Quebec, Marchand led the striking workers as ...

(1961–1964) *

Marcel Pepin Marcel Pepin (February 28, 1926 – March 6, 2000) was a trade unionist in Quebec, Canada. He was the president of the Confédération des syndicats nationaux from 1965 until 1976. Biography Pepin graduated with a master's degree in industrial re ...

(1965–1976) *Norbert Rodrigue (1976–1982) *Donatien Corriveau (1982–83) *

Gérald Larose Gérald Larose (born October 24, 1945) is a Quebec activist, professor, and former President of the Confédération des syndicats nationaux labour union. He is currently head of the Conseil de la Souveraineté du Québec, Pierre, Samuel, ''Ces Qu� ...

(1983–1999) *

(1999–2002) * Claudette Carbonneau (2002–2011) *

(2011–2012) *

Jacques Létourneau Ancient and noble French family names, Jacques, Jacq, or James are believed to originate from the Middle Ages in the historic northwest Brittany region in France, and have since spread around the world over the centuries. To date, there are over ...

(2012–2021) *Caroline Senneville (2021–present)

References

Sources

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External links