mars 6, 2015 à 21:43
Today, Unifor Local 2002 members at Swissport were stunned to learn that the Greater Toronto Airport Authority (GTAA) had awarded the Airport Customer Assistance Program (ACAP) contract to another ground handling company. This news dealt a crushing blow to Swissport members who had only recently achieved significant improvements to their wages, benefits and work structure through the collective bargaining process.
Nearly ten years ago a beaming ACAP attendant, perched in the driver’s seat of a shiny new passenger surrey graced the cover of the GTAA’s TORONTO PEARSON TODAY magazine. Inside, the Authority boasts that ACAP (which they launched in 2004) provided a ‘seamless service from a passenger’s vehicle to the seat of the aircraft’ and that the year before, 300 agents who spoke 60 languages between them (including sign language) had assisted over 640,000 passengers. The GTAA went on to say that they had plans to hire another 50 agents. The future bode well for the program.
But the road – and the race - to the bottom, is paved with good intentions.
Unfortunately, the future has been anything but bright for the workers at Canada’s largest airport. This is in large part due to the fact that the Request for Proposal (RFP) system that the GTAA employs to secure ground handling services (like ACAP) is flawed; the GTAA awards contracts to whomever they decide based on a number of criteria requested in a pages long process.
But the bottom line is based on a dollar, rather than service value.
Unifor has worked hard to maintain consistency for airport employees. We have repeatedly met with the GTAA and asked for a stabilization of their contract award process. The 40,000 workers at Pearson are not just passing through on their way to sunny destinations. The GTAA has a responsibility to the people who make Pearson work; who go to their jobs day in, day out to support their families and contribute to the communities they live in.
Over the past months, Unifor worked collaboratively with Swissport to secure the ACAP jobs. We will continue to explore all options working closely with our national union. The plight of our members and the flawed RFP process will no doubt be top of the agenda when Unifor President Jerry Dias meets with GTAA President and Chief Executive Officer Howard Eng on March 16.
Few specifics have been released, however we know that ACAP work will remain with Swissport workers until April 30, 2015. For our membership this means status quo, until further notice. Our ACAP members are professional and caring workers who will continue to deliver quality customer service as they have done for many years.
This has been a year full of uncertainty for a loyal group of employees. We will continue to keep you informed of any news regarding this situation as it transpires.
For more information, please contact Assistant to Local 2002 President,
Theresa Amicarelli