CATCA and NAV Canada bargaining teams met in Vancouver, British Columbia to open our ninth round of collective bargaining since 1996.
The meeting opened with greetings and introduction of the members of both committees. Leading the negotiations for NAV Canada is Elizabeth Cameron, Vice-President of Labour Relations, accompanied by her team, including:
- Jacques Emond – Legal Counsel – External
- Amanda Sarginson – Senior Legal Counsel – NAV Canada
- Trevor Johnson – VP, Air Traffic Services
- Anthony MacKay – AVP Air Traffic Services
- Greg Dansereau – MACCO YVR ACC
- Robert Fleming – YQX Shift Manager
- Sheri King – Director, Labour Relations, Negotiations
- Dustin Abbott – Labour Relations Researcher
- Paul Estes – Manager, Operations Finance
- Karen Donovan-Bhoi – Labour Relations Advisor, Administration
Also in attendance for the opening was Rudy Kellar – EVP – Service Delivery.
In her opening remarks, Elizabeth Cameron thanked all the members of both bargaining teams for their commitment to the process. Elizabeth commented on the great work that has occurred during the closed period between CATCA and NAV Canada. She went on to describe the main themes NAV Canada will pursue in this round of bargaining.
- Ensure costs don’t escalate beyond our ability to pay in the future.
- Further improving the training environment to ensure qualification of new controllers.
- Ensuring flexibility to address service delivery needs through scheduling while always considering fatigue, scheduling rules and productivity
EVP Rudy Kellar gave remarks surrounding the future for NAV Canada and commented on the success of prior rounds of bargaining. Mr. Kellar commented that CATCA members will be critical in the future and thanked those in attendance for our efforts to date. Rudy stressed the long-term vision of operational planning and urged everyone to think far down the road and where NAV Canada will be in the years to come.
Replying on CATCA’s behalf, President Peter Duffey spoke about the tremendous responsibility of all parties in the room to deliver a collective agreement that will receive a high ratification vote. Peter spoke about the financial success of NAV Canada and how numerous aviation think tanks are putting forward projections that success will only continue in the coming years and decades. Inadequate staffing levels were addressed in Peter’s opening remarks and historical staffing levels were discussed in the context of still having a large problem today. Work-life balance and work schedules were a key focus in President Duffey’s opening comments, along with the expectation to receive financial recognition for the efforts put forth by CATCA’s membership.
Both sides then exchanged documents outlining the main themes of their proposals. Each side explained their proposals and an opportunity was provided to both sides to ask questions and seek clarity on the documents.
Please note that as always, these documents do not reflect detailed or final contract proposals.
Both sides will meet again in Ottawa from January 7 – 11, 2019. In the meantime, while actual bargaining proceedings are confidential, if you have any questions or concerns about the process, please address them to your Regional Vice President. We appreciate the support and patience of all our members as your elected representatives work their way through this crucial round of bargaining.
In solidarity,
Peter Duffey Doug Best
President Executive Vice President
Click here for the PDF.