December 3, 2021 at 4:00 PM
On November 17, 2021, members of Unifor locals from across Canada held the first Aviation Council meeting since the pandemic closed borders and practically mothballed Canada’s air travel industry.
With a focus to build back better, Council members stated – even with COVID-19 still impacting air travel – the sector is recovering slowly and hope to see a return to pre-pandemic travel levels one day soon.
"As a sector, we’re clearly in for a slow path back to where we were before the pandemic. While flights may be full, there are far fewer than before as airlines manage capacity," said Leslie Dias, Unifor Director of Airlines in her opening remarks. "As a union, we’ve been looking at things we can do to speed up that process."
Prior to the pandemic, Unifor locals represented nearly 16,000 members working in the air transportation sector, including pilots, customer service representatives, aircraft groomers, catering staff and air traffic controllers, among others. Membership numbers plunged to 11,000 by December 2020.
"The pandemic has in many ways made us stronger as a union," said Unifor Secretary-Treasurer Lana Payne. "We must continue to use every tool we have to keep our workplaces safe and to demand an economy and society that is better than before. One that is built on the lessons from this pandemic and we must continue to ensure our union is active, responsive and powerful."
Local 2002 members have experienced their share of stress, uncertainty, and job loss since the pandemic began early in 2020. By January of 2021, many airlines were well into the process of announcing additional route closures, shuttering offices, and even permanently closing operations, leaving thousands of members out of work with an uncertain future.
During the Council, numerous presentations were made that gave members valuable information on issues such as technology in the workplace, vaccine mandates, pay equity issues, and internal communications practices.
The Council elected a new Executive Board for the next term including several members from Local 2002:
- Aviation Council Chairperson: Tammy Moore, Local 2002 President
- Secretary-Treasurer: Steven Connolly, Local 2245 Secretary-Treasurer - ATSAC/ASCAC
- Vice Chairperson: Don Ross, Local 2002 VP, Jazz Maintenance
- Member at large: Wade Ireland, Local 2002 Secretary-Treasurer
- Member at large: Ada Zampini, Local 2002 VP, Eastern Region
- Member at large: Elizabeth O’Hurley, Local 2245 President - ATSAC/ASCAC
Josée Genois – Assistant to the Local President, Benoit Lapointe – Bargaining Representative and Quebec Council Chairperson, as well as Paula Cunha – District 400 Chairperson were also in attendance from Local 2002.
The next Aviation Council meeting will take place in Q1 of 2022.
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