April 14, 2021
Member Weekly Update – Edition #13
Please find the latest edition of weekly updates to the membership about ongoing Union business.
On Monday, April 12, 2021, the Federal government announced that it would be providing Air Canada with a relief package with up to $5.9 billion in funds. ACA has agreed to restore flights on nearly all suspended regional routes, refund customers who had flights cancelled last year due to COVID-19, and said they would maintain its workforce at current levels, respect collective bargaining agreements and protect workers’ pensions. The relief package will maintain thousands of jobs and help reenergize the Canadian aviation sector and economy. Details of the Air Canada deal can be found via the following links here & here on the Government of Canada’s website.
On Thursday, April 8, 2021, President Doug Best and Executive Vice President Scott Loder met with Bud Sambasivam, Senior Policy Advisor on Transportation, from the Minister of Finance’s office. The discussion was critical as we head towards the upcoming Budget announcement scheduled for April 19, 2021, as CATCA impressed upon Mr. Sambasivam the importance Air Traffic Controllers will play in the aviation sector’s recovery.
The CATCA Executive Board (EB) continues to receive complaints regarding actions by NAV Canada regarding questionable and unsafe practices. We ask that all CATCA members complete the online “Documenting Safety Occurrences” form should you witness any situation in which NAV Canada is making decisions that affect the safe and efficient provision of Air Traffic Control Services. Click here to access the form. This data collection is imperative as we move forward with discussions not only internally but with external authorities.
As previously stated, CATCA met with NAV Canada representatives last week for the first scheduled arbitration meeting regarding the grievances. We are continuing with arbitration meetings on Thursday, April 15, 2021, for Articles 4, 31, 32, 33, but have advised the Company we would like to continue talks about solutions in conjunction with the arbitration. At this time, there is no meaningful information to convey to Members; we continue to prepare for the next meeting and will be updating Members accordingly once that has taken place.
We recognize how difficult and challenging the situation is for you. There are many ways we are all being affected by decisions made by the Company. We encourage members to speak with one another, reach out to your RVP, and utilize EAP services to obtain additional support click here or here.
On Behalf of the Executive Board;
Doug Best Scott Loder
President Executive Vice President
Click here for the PDF.