CUPE Rectifies Pay Injustice for Members at Air Canada

VANCOUVER, British Columbia--(BUSINESS WIRE)--CUPE's Air Canada Component is pleased to see progress on an important pay issue for its members at Air Canada and Air Canada Rouge. The union spoke out last week about how ground delays at Pearson Airport, have been resulting in members working for significantly reduced pay or for free, due to an outdated policy which paid flight attendants drastically less - or nothing at all - for their time on the ground. However, that has now changed.

Air Canada and Air Canada Rouge have just signed a memorandum of agreement with CUPE which will see ground duty pay related to "metering" - the process of managing air traffic in and out of terminals - at Pearson Airport escalated to 100 per cent.

"Making our members essentially work for free was simply unjust, and we're happy to have the company come to the table, recognizing the issue and helping to rectify this injustice," said Wesley Lesosky, President of CUPE's Air Canada Component.

The memorandum also acknowledges the impact of the delays on flight attendants' schedules, and establishes considerations for ensuring flight attendants are rested enough for their next scheduled duty after a lengthy unscheduled ground delay.

"This represents important progress for our members at Air Canada and Air Canada Rouge, but we know we are not the only airline facing these issues," Lesosky added. "We will continue fighting across our union to make sure all our members are paid fairly for their time. No one should be working for free."

CUPE’s Air Canada Component represents approximately 9,500 flight attendants at Air Canada and Air Canada Rouge. CUPE’s Air Division represents approximately 15,000 flight attendants across nine different airlines in total.