Daycare Closure Strands Montreal Families, Leaves Employees Without Work

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The Centre de la petite enfance (CPE) Les Bécasseaux, in Montreal’s East End, is closing down on September 15 for renovations with only 81 days’ warning to families. 

This government-subsidized daycare has not met fire code for nearly two years, but it is unclear how long the government or the directors have been aware of the problem. Preparations for renovations have been underway for at least four months, likely more, and parents are questioning why there was no information shared about these potential renovations prior to June 26.

The daycare is expected to reopen in May 2026.

In the meantime, 27 children who frequent the CPE will be taken in by daycares that are across the city, adding hours to their daily commutes, and all but three employees will be left without a job or compensation for the duration of the renovations. The parents have been forced to scramble for affordable childcare because the provincial government did not allocate a budget for the CPE to rent a temporary space. 

The parents say that their frustrations have been poorly received by the director of the centre, Robert Racine.

“The CPE didn’t inform us they were closing; it was the educators who let us know that they would be unemployed,” said Fred, a parent at the CPE. Upon hearing this information, the parents spread it among themselves. One parent said that solidarity and a righteous outrage grew among the families.

The employees learned that most of them were being left without work during the closures. They were given no clear timeline for how long the work would take. The motivations for closure are somewhat unclear.

The building has not been up to fire code for at least two years, a spokesperson for the union Confédération des syndicats nationaux (CSN) said in an email, yet the official letter that the CPE sent to the parents about the closure hardly mentioned this. It mainly discusses “renovation and expansion.” The expansion of the CPE will not technically be a part of Les Bécasseaux, but instead will be a separate CPE, a CSN spokesperson told The Rover. 

“The employees will be laid off in September — if not earlier,” the spokesperson said, citing a lower attendance during the summer. The spokesperson also said that the union “has no further information on management’s short- or long-term plans — nor do the employees or the parents concerned.” 

Les Bécasseaux was planning these renovations and closures for at least three months before the family and staff found out, and probably more since the building had not been up to fire code for at least two years. Despite this knowledge, no public discussions or announcements were held.

Racine, the director, outlines in his letter to the families that in April, the CPE met with the family minister to discuss the renovations needed. He said that they “informed (the government) that we did not have the financial resources to rent temporary premises.

“To date, the Ministry has not offered us any financial support to facilitate this relocation.” The letter reads. 

On the week of June 16, the CPE opened up bidding for the renovations. Any private-public partnership must take bids for major projects, and is required, by law, to accept the bid with the lowest price. That same week, they accepted a bid.

Racine says that they required a clarification meeting with the minister of families after they’d accepted the bid, and the minister “seemed poorly informed about the situation.” They received approval from the ministry.

By June 25, all the parents were told that the CPE would be closing in September, and that all but three of the staff had been laid off. On June 26, Racine sent out the letter confirming this. 

A spokesperson for the ministry of families declined The Rover’s request for a phone interview and said that there were alternatives offered to the parents, and that “the ministry understands that this situation is creating uncertainty for some people and is available to support them.” 

The parents aren’t feeling supported.

“No concrete solution has been offered to relocate all the children, the educators have been laid off without a clear plan, (and) management refuses any genuine dialogue with parents,” Geneviève, a parent whose child attends Les Bécasseaux, said in an email.  

The CPE can care for up to 61 children a day, and in the email, it specifies other CPEs that would be able to take up to 53 children with limitations based on age. Meanwhile, the parents allege that the director has offered up to 40 places that will be available. There are 57 kids currently at the CPE. Some will be advancing to Junior Kindergarten, but the rest need a new CPE until May 2026. This means that several will be left without childcare, but even those who find a new spot within the network connected to Les Bécasseaux have serious hurdles to overcome.

Of the other placements available, there are only 24 within a reasonable distance of Les Bécasseaux, and the next closest is a minimum of 40 minutes by train. Twelve of those placements are across the island in Notre-Dame-de-Grâce. 

“I don’t know that you could choose (a CPE) that’s further away, especially if you’re dependent on the metro. We’re talking about adding two hours to someone’s commute — which doesn’t work if you have other children with school, or other things in the area,” Joanna, another parent said.

The director was uncommunicative with the parents, and only because of a petition that was started by the families, as well as a coordinated effort to pressure him into it, did he agree to a meeting on July 3. Some of the parents whom The Rover spoke to described him as “dismissive” and “rude” during the meeting. The educators were not allowed to attend the meeting. The parents fought to allow them into the building, but were denied.

“There was a demonstration of disrespect. I don’t know what was behind that, maybe it was anxiety… but he did not know how to respond to parents who were righteously upset, and who were looking to him for some kind of leadership,” Joanna said. The other parents we spoke to echoed a similar sentiment, feeling that there was no clarity given by this meeting, resulting in an exasperated group that felt unheard and angry at the end. 

“The educators’ union has been trying to change things (at this CPE) for three years, but to no avail. They’re not being treated well.” Véronique, another parent at Les Bécasseaux said in an email. Some parents believe that this is a coordinated effort on behalf of the director to get rid of the staff. The Union does not suspect there to be foul play. Although the employees are some of the most senior in the family of CPEs connected to Les Bécasseaux, the union did not feel that the goal was to get new staff at lower salaries.

Racine left for vacation on Monday, July 7. We have sent several emails and communicated with the staff, who have reached out to him requesting comment, but he has not responded to these requests. Racine will be on vacation until July 28. This story will be updated if we receive a comment from Racine.

The union wants to see this situation resolved. “We are open and will be available to have discussions with the CPE management in order to find solutions and ensure that the workers are not penalized by the temporary closure,” the spokesperson said. 

Are you a parent left without service? Call the Ministère de la Famille (family ministry) here:

1 855 336-8568

https://www.mfa.gouv.qc.ca/fr/pour-nous-joindre/Pages/index.aspx