Flair Airlines: Collective Bargaining Update

Flair Airlines: Collective Bargaining Update

February 16, 2018 at 11:15 AM
As of January 2017, the Canadian Industrial Relations Board (CIRB) certified Unifor as the bargaining agent for all pilots employed by Flair Airlines Ltd. 

Since receiving certification, your Bargaining Committee has worked extensively behind the scenes on the following issues:
 
  • Elected a Bargaining Committee 
  • Prepared Bargaining Surveys for the membership
  • Developed and created new Collective Agreement which formed the basis of our proposals
  • Meet with the Company in September 2017 to exchange proposals both monetary and non-monetary
  • Dozens of articles and clauses have been signed off that will be incorporated into the tentative agreement. 
To date, your Bargaining Committee has made great progress on the non-monetary items, however, there remain some contentious issues that need to be addressed with the Company with respect to: “Hours of Work” and monetary items. Since progress has been slow, the Union would welcome a change in dynamics at the bargaining table in hopes of finding some common ground towards reaching a fair deal for our members.

On Tuesday, February 13, 2018, we advised the Company that we would be filing for conciliation before the end of this week – February 16, 2018.  The conciliation process does not alter in any way, our focus and determination to bargain the best possible collective agreement for you.

Conciliation Process:
Once a Notice of Dispute is filed, the Ministry of Labour has 15 days to appoint a conciliation officer. Once appointed, the officer meets with both parties over a 60-day period to facilitate negotiations. If the parties feel they are close to reaching a resolution they may agree to extend the conciliation period. If not, the parties enter a 21 day "cooling off period” and the officer reports back to the Minister of Labour. 

Stay in the Know
Your Bargaining Committee shares in the member's frustrations as it relates to the length of time it has taken to reach a tentative agreement and for that, we thank you for your patience and support during this time. Your Union understands the needs and desires of the membership and we are confident a negotiated settlement can be reached. This coming April, May, and June the Union will be meeting with the Company to reconvene bargaining. 

We will continue to keep you informed of any updates as they are made available. Communication and transparency will continue to be a top priority for the Flair Bargaining Committee.  Please ensure that you have subscribed to Unifor 2002’s e-news service at www.unifor2002.org


In solidarity,

Your Bargaining Committee 
Sterling Dunne – Bargaining Committee Representative 
Nathan Conley – Bargaining Committee Representative 
Euila Leonard – President of Local 2002 
Andrea Macbride – National Staff of Unifor 
 
For more information,
please contact: Ashley Watkins- Assistant to the Local President