Things have escalated since I was there... pic.twitter.com/HHWvaCFIme. We aim to create a safe and valuable space for discussion and debate. But the hasty passage of Bill 133 into law means that this colourful chapter in Montreal’s history of police protests has seemingly come to a close. A police officer is dead and 108 people have been arrested following 16 hours of chaos during which police and firefighters refused to work. And a Laval man got out of a $1,200 fine because an officer who tried to pull him over wasn't wearing her regulation uniform.

They should represent order, not disorder.

Comments may take up to an hour for moderation before appearing on the site. Montreal’s police union asks officers to wear their regular uniforms for part of a week. (The officers did wear their uniforms to the funeral of hockey great Jean Béliveau last December, leading one person on Twitter to quip that Mr. Parizeau's failing was that he helped build Quebec, he didn't win a Stanley Cup.). Get a roundup of the most important and intriguing national stories delivered to your inbox every weekday. “The confusion, in certain cases, could be very serious,” said the Québécois public security minister Martin Coiteux shortly after the ruling. Eager to express their displeasure but forbidden legally to strike, law enforcement in the city has taken to donning everything from garish camouflage pants and leopard-print leggings to jeans and other forms of dissident fashion. Exclusive opportunities for deals and pre-sales. Welcome to The Globe and Mail’s comment community.

Earlier this summer, Montreal police officers started looking like police officers again, after ditching the colourful camouflage pants they began wearing to protest lagging contract talks. A longstanding dispute over pensions has pushed the city's men and women in blue to wear anything but. Honey made by the busy bees on the roof of the Bell Centre is officially available for purchase online. Postmedia is committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion and encourage all readers to share their views on our articles. "By doing this, the government has acted as judge and party," said Franck Perales. Other police unions across the province are also opposed to the bill for similar reasons. Officers were roundly criticized for wearing camo pants while working outside the venue of Jacques Parizeau's 2015 state funeral. It is a priority for CBC to create a website that is accessible to all Canadians including people with visual, hearing, motor and cognitive challenges. Quebec Premier Philippe Couillard says his government is not going to back down on pension plan reforms.

In an interview on Thursday, she cited cases of terrified citizens mistaking police in combat fatigues for bank robbers. The city of Montreal and the police union say they will take part in a round of intensive bargaining between June 18 and June 21, with the possibility of extending the session. IN PHOTOS: Quebec politerati attend Jacques Parizeau’s funeral in Montreal, State funeral for former Quebec premier Jacques Parizeau in Montreal.

The officers' decision to spurn their uniforms in favour of colourful pants at the state funeral of former premier Jacques Parizeau this week sparked an unusually intense round of criticism, spanning from Montreal Mayor Denis Coderre and across social media to Quebec Premier Philippe Couillard, who called it disrespectful and now promises to legislate an end to the practice.

Please try again. Wearing red baseball caps and camouflage pants while honking horns and blowing whistles, they were often met with loud boos as they passed by busy terraces. READ MORE: Controversy over Montreal police camo pants protest. Visit our Community Guidelines for more information and details on how to adjust your email settings. But by that point the non-compliant pants protest had already concluded following an intensive round of bargaining between the city and the police union in June. But now, the city's police union is set to go before the National Assembly, to argue for the right to wear the clown pants for future labour disputes. By continuing to use our site, you agree to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.

Sign-up to receive information on promotions and contests. Coiteux called the camo pant pressure tactic "unacceptable.". No such legislation is tabled in the fall. Quebec judge chided for court delays over camouflage pants. Apparently, their strike comes in a colorful camo pattern. In most cities around the world, police officers are identified by a gun and a badge. This article was published more than 5 years ago.

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Montreal’s police union says it will challenge in court an arbitrator’s ruling ordering it to stop a two-year sticker campaign that has seen squad cars turned into protest vehicles. Police have worn camouflage and other colourful pants for three years to protest against government pension reform bill. Quebec government adopts Bill 3, legislation changing pension provisions for municipal workers, including police officers. They should be easy to identify, especially in the case of an emergency, he added.

Read our, I'm a print subscriber, link to my account, Avoid the use of toxic and offensive language. Forbidden from striking, officers in Montreal’s 4,600-strong police force wore non-regulation colourful cargo pants, checkered clown trousers and animal-print leggings in their three-year fight over pensions. jessica.dionne@bellmedia.ca, 299 Queen Street West The bill comes on the heels of Coiteux saying his patience was running out, promising late last month that a bill was on the way. The bilingual city is known to embrace protests at a far faster rate than they are declared illegal, in spite of winter temperatures reaching below -20C. “This is a practice that is not acceptable,” Coiteux said. Union members refused to sign new contracts for two years, and plastered their cars – as well as buses and walls – with stickers demanding “libre négo”, the right to negotiate. Montreal’s police union says officers will wear their regular uniforms during a funeral in Montreal for three of the six victims of the attack on a mosque in Quebec City the previous Sunday. Quebec Public Security Minister Martin Coiteux says Quebec will legislate a ban on police officers wearing camouflage pants on the job. "With these powers come certain obligations," said Coiteux. Couillard’s comments followed those of Montreal Mayor Denis Coderre, who said Montreal’s police brotherhood showed a lack of class. The union argues the arbitrator committed errors of law, most notably by ruling that the protest stickers were not protected by the freedom of expression provisions of the Charter of Rights. Bill 133 is the Quebec government's effort to force officers to ditch the camouflage pants they have been wearing as a form of protest since 2014, when Philippe Couillard's Liberal government introduced municipal pension reform. Last December, the city of Châteauguay on Montreal's South Shore went to court after its officers doffed old-West cowboy hats and sheriffs' stars in their pension protest. "Uniforms should be worn, whether it's by constables or police officers. The police union feared proposed changes to municipal pension plans would cost officers an average of $6,000 a year each – almost a 10th of their salary. But now, there are signs that the great police pant protest may have gone too far. By 11:20 am, the first bank was robbed.

The legislation leaves officers, who do not have the right to strike in Quebec, with very few ways to put pressure on the government and make public their concerns, he said.