February 1, 2008 at 12:00 AM
Ron DiPasquale – Executive Assistant, West stated, "It’s a sad day as the Vancouver Airport Authority has again affected the livelihood of CAW members in British Columbia. Our struggle to improve workers wages and benefits is constantly under attack by the loss of contracts controlled by airport authorities in Canada. We will miss working with the great people at Worldwide YVR. I hope the transition assistance the CAW provided for our members and their families has helped them move to the next stage of their career."
The CAW believes the YVR Airport Authority has been systematically working with airlines to bring in the lowest paid labour. Since airport authorities were privatized they work against the best interests of employees in a rush to the bottom on costs and benefits. Airport authorities clearly need to have more oversight from the Federal Government or be brought back into the public sector.
Adrian Burnett, CAW Chairperson at Worldwide stated, "I’ve always enjoyed working in the air transportation industry. Much of what I’ve learned about social justice and treating workers fairly I’ve learned from the CAW. I’ll keep involved in the labour movement and thank the CAW for its hard work in bringing better wages and benefits to employees at Worldwide."