Air Transat Pilots Overwhelmingly authorize strike

[BlueStar]

Air Transat Pilots Overwhelmingly Authorize Union to Call Strike



Air Transat Pilots Overwhelmingly Authorize Union to Call Strike
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BusinessWire · Tuesday, Aug. 17, 2010

The pilots of Air Transat, represented by the Air Line Pilots Association, Int’l (ALPA), resoundingly support conducting a lawful strike if a collective agreement is not reached with their management. In a recent strike ballot issued by the union leadership to the pilot group, an overwhelming 97 percent of pilots voted in favour of a lawful strike, should it become necessary to conclude a fair collective agreement with Air Transat management. The pilots have been in negotiations since January of this year.

“This vote serves as notice to the company that our pilots are united and stand firm behind our goal of achieving a fair and equitable contract,” said Captain Sylvain Aubin, chairman of the Air Transat Master Executive Council (MEC), the unit of ALPA that represents Air Transat pilots. Of the pilots eligible to vote, more than 90 percent participated in the balloting. “Our pilots are seeking a contract that recognizes their contribution to the success of the airline that they have helped to build,” Captain Aubin added.

In June, Air Transat pilots received a $1 million grant from ALPA’s Major Contingency Fund (MCF), which provides pilot groups with the resources needed for responding when threats to their jobs and their profession are imminent. “While Air Transat pilots consider a strike a matter of last resort, this vote demonstrates their steadfast unity in achieving their contract goals,” said Captain John Prater, ALPA’s president. “If the pilots of Air Transat choose to declare a strike, it will be conducted with the extensive resources and the full backing of the nearly 53,000 pilots ALPA represents.”

On June 25, Canada’s Minister of Labour, Lisa Raitt, appointed Ms. Maureen Flynn to serve as conciliation commissioner. The conciliation time line establishes a series of hard deadlines for negotiators, including a 60-day conciliation period that will expire on September 10, 2010, unless the parties agree to extend the process. Under the Canada Labour Code, both the strike authorization vote and written notification to the company are required steps before any withdrawal of services can begin. At the end of conciliation, a mandatory 21-day waiting period will go into effect, which concludes at midnight on October 1, at which time Air Transat pilots will be in a legal position to strike.

After more than six months of bargaining, substantial issues remain open, particularly in the areas of job outsourcing, pilot fatigue mitigation, and compensation, according to Aubin. The pilots continue to work under a contract that has seen no adjustments to allowances to pension or benefits, and adjustments to concessionary pay scales have fallen well below the rate of inflation.
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[Samson]

I'm pulling for these guys. Hopefully things work out better for them then the Jazz contract. Ms. Raitt will have a harder time preventing a strike by saying the service they provide is essential for the country in this case.

[tsgas]

Good time for the company to park some planes and conserve cash.

[60N30W]

Good try tsgas. Hard to park aircraft when you are short aircraft and short crews in the first place.

[Localizer]

I'm pulling for these guys. Hopefully things work out better for them then the Jazz contract. Ms. Raitt will have a harder time preventing a strike by saying the service they provide is essential for the country in this case.

I hope all the best for them as well .. but Lisa "The Rat" Raitt has her ways .. all she has to say is that "its in the interest of Canada" and BOOM! .. BTWL is on the table! .. that easy! Remember Canadian's need there vacations! ..

All the best to the Transat pilots!

Cheers! Loc

[sanjet]

Good time for the company to park some planes and conserve cash.

Why is there no comradery from some of pilots when it comes to supporting our collegues when they are trying to better the industry standards for all of us in Canada.

Best of luck to the TS pilots.

[industrypolice]

Good time for the company to park some planes and conserve cash.

Why is there no comradery from some of pilots when it comes to supporting our collegues when they are trying to better the industry standards for all of us in Canada.

Best of luck to the TS pilots.

Because some pilots believe in sacrfice and slavery for the benefit of thier god, the company. Its the same reason why some pilots are gullible enough to work ramp for a flying job.

[YYZatcboy]

Here's hoping that they can work out a contract that is good for both the Pilots and the Company. Remember, it's supposed to be a symbiotic relationship.

[ng78]

This will be a very interesting one to watch. From the outside at least, Air Transat has a great contract, possibly second only to Air Canada in this country. The issue of job outsourcing is a biggie, as the Transat Group does not necessarily need the airline to operate, although it would be in their best interest to continue to do so as long as it is economically viable. I'd love to see Air Transat grow with additional wide bodies, plus the addition of 737's or other narrow body aircraft.

Good luck!

[frankfrank]

Conciliation commissioner????

Sound like beaurucrat BS to me. The Minister will probably shoot down their strike just like she almost did to Jazzes.

Minister of Labour is an impartial ass, for those that didn't know.

[palebird]

Symbiotic, are you joking... anyone who goes on strike right now or even threatens to is an idiot..does not matter what the past decried, look at the future, it is not bright and for pilots to threaten strike action this fall is a huge joke..

[IflyaSewerpipe]

palebird. What's a matter with you? Who's the idiot?

[whipline]

Are you kidding palebird? AT's flying is being outsourced to the lowest bidder. The list is stagnent at AT while CJ3 is flourishing. I'm surprised this hasn't happened sooner. What the AT pilots are doing is courageous and I'm 110% behind them. Unless you work for Canjet?

Go get your flying back guys/gals!

[ng78]

isn't threatening job action if they don't reduce the outsourcing counter-productive though?

[North Shore]

Why is there no comradery from some of pilots when it comes to supporting our collegues when they are trying to better the industry standards for all of us in Canada.

Best of luck to the TS pilots.

Pretty ironic comment from a person who uses a JetsGo picture as their avatar!

[sanjet]

Why is there no comradery from some of pilots when it comes to supporting our collegues when they are trying to better the industry standards for all of us in Canada.

Best of luck to the TS pilots.

Pretty ironic comment from a person who uses a JetsGo picture as their avatar!

It serves as a constant reminder to all of us. And no, I never have worked for Jetsgo

[yak8]

Did everybody forgot that AT was a low cost carrier ? With new low cost compagny around now, they lost there competiveness/productivity advance they had. (vertical trust, wich was well done and unique, but copied by now, like for Sunwing)
On top of a copied business plan, their pilots got pretty fat (nothing wrong, we all want better flying conditions),compare to those of Sunwing (for exemple,or Canjet) who fly more, make less and spend less family quality time home...
And look now,free champagne with AT like...Sunwing!
If you speak to the original AT pilots, they gave it "all in"..
So no advantaging business plan + less productive employees = less profit.
In that case negative profits for the last 2 years...And we're not out of the reccession, far from it lads !
So don't break anything.
That will be bad to see Home depot employees with 330 PPC...
Good luck and best for all !

[whipline]

Yak, what does your post have to do with outsourcing flying? Sunwing's owner has been in the tour business longer then Transat, so I don't think there is much copying going on. Pay scales are also pretty close. Sunwing pilots don't fly longhaul. Most pilots, if they choose to be are home every night.

A lot of people forget there is a soft value to the product. When you outsource flying, it might be cheaper on paper but you loose control of the product and quality of service. In the end it costs more.

I would doubt the AirTransat pilots are looking for much money, just some job security and recognition of their contribution to the company.

[Mooney21]

Did everybody forgot that AT was a low cost carrier ? With new low cost compagny around now, they lost there competiveness/productivity advance they had. (vertical trust, wich was well done and unique, but copied by now, like for Sunwing)
On top of a copied business plan, their pilots got pretty fat (nothing wrong, we all want better flying conditions),compare to those of Sunwing (for exemple,or Canjet) who fly more, make less and spend less family quality time home...
And look now,free champagne with AT like...Sunwing!
If you speak to the original AT pilots, they gave it "all in"..
So no advantaging business plan + less productive employees = less profit.
In that case negative profits for the last 2 years...And we're not out of the reccession, far from it lads !
So don't break anything.
That will be bad to see Home depot employees with 330 PPC...
Good luck and best for all !

Yak 8, thanks for your support, but I would like to correct you on two points. Air Transat was never a low cost carrier. Also Air Transat is not a public company, Group Transat is the public company, so how do you know that Air Transat has had negative profit for the last 2 years? Or were you referring to Group Transat?

Do not forget that our empoyer is Air Transat and not Transat AT.

[invertedattitude]

Good luck to the AT people!