MONTREAL — The Quebec government has reached a tentative deal with a union representing about 40 per cent of the province’s teachers, who have been on unlimited strike since Nov. 23.

Fédération autonome de l’enseignement — or FAE — said Wednesday night that after 22 days of striking it is ready to present a deal to its leadership.

Shortly after, Treasury Board Chair Sonia LeBel and Education Minister Bernard Drainville confirmed that the deal involved salaries and working conditions for the roughly 66,000 members of the union.

The FAE took the most hard line out of all the public sector unions negotiating new contracts with the government, launching an unlimited general strike in November that shut about 800 schools. 

The union says if its leadership approves the deal, the agreement in principle will be presented to members in the new year.

On Wednesday the government said it had reached tentative deals on working conditions with all the unions that are part of a labour alliance representing about 420,000 public sector workers.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 28, 2023.

The Canadian Press