June 25, 2015 at 10:17 PM
Members of Unifor Local 2002,
representing over 4,000 Customer Sales and Service Representatives, have
ratified a new five-year collective agreement with Air Canada by 65 per cent.
"Our members deserve to share in Air Canada’s
record profits," said Jerry Dias, Unifor National President. "This agreement
secures good jobs for Customer Sales and Service Agents now and into the
future."
A pivotal arbitration victory in May 2015 paved the
way towards recovering wheelchair assistance work seized earlier this year by
airport authorities. New language related to the agreement also provides
protections against future contracting out.
The agreement features a significant hourly wage
increase for those at the lower end of the salary grid.
"From the beginning we prioritized better wages for
Air Canada's newer agents, and we’re very pleased that we achieved that," said
Cheryl Robinson, Unifor Local 2002 President. "Wage increases combined with
improved benefits make this a good deal for all of our members."
"Many of our members made sacrifices for the
company during tougher times," said Robinson. "This makes real gains in benefits
and job security for all of our Air Canada members."
Voting took place at membership meetings over the
last 8 days. The contract is effective from March 1, 2015 to February 28, 2020.
Unifor is Canada's largest union in the private
sector, representing more than 305,000 workers. It was formed Labour Day weekend
2013 when the Canadian Auto Workers and the Communications, Energy and
Paperworkers unions merged.
For more information please contact:
Your
regional bargaining representative