Your Bargaining Committee is continuing to work through new developments and keep you advised. The latest development is the fact that Air Canada has filed two grievances against the Air Canada Component of CUPE.
Click here for the Mainline grievance
Click here for the Rouge grievance
They have also tried to intimidate and muzzle your Component President and Union by sending a cease-and-desist letter, which can be viewed HERE.
An emergency hearing was convened with Chief Arbitrator William Kaplan at Air Canada’s request. It was seeking an order from the Chief Arbitrator on an expedited basis.
The Chief Arbitrator heard submissions from both parties. During these submissions Air Canada confirmed that members who were away from home base and working home once the strike commenced would NOT be paid for their inbound flight or duty periods after the strike commenced. Nor would they have any Collective Agreement protections.
The hearing was adjourned. Air Canada did not receive the order sought.
Please remember to educate yourself about what your rights are and govern yourself accordingly. You had the right to know this previously and reached out to your managers for reassurance and guidance. Their lack of replies left you in a difficult situation with not enough information. The Company was not willing to provide clarity on all your rights and entitlements however we do believe that it was their intention all along not to pay you to bring their passengers home once the strike commenced.
Remember, your UNION is here for you. EAP is also available.
We continue to wait on word from the Minister of Jobs on the response to our submissions on Section 107 of the Canada Labour Code. As soon as we have an update to share with you, we will.
In solidarity,
Your Bargaining Committee