Guest2 Posted September 26, 2022 Share Posted September 26, 2022 I wonder if they are also against "wet leasing"? If memory serves, they have had some "wet leases" in the past. Quote Basic search - Canada.ca Sunwing union opposes Canadian carrier's plans to hire foreign pilots By Allison Lampert 3 minute read Canada's Liberal Prime Minister Justin Trudeau makes an announcement inside the Sunwing Airlines hangar during his election campaign tour in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada, September 3, 2021. REUTERS/Carlos Osorio/File PhotoRegister Sept 25 (Reuters) - The union for Sunwing Airlines pilots said it is urging Canada's government to stop a plan by the Ontario-based leisure carrier to hire foreign pilots this winter to help cope with an expected holiday travel surge. Airline industry use of foreign pilots as aviation rebounds from the COVID-19 pandemic is sensitive for unions in Canada and the United States. Those unions want greater efforts to hire pilots from the airlines' home countries despite complaints of shortages. read more "It's a punch in the face," Barret Armann, president of the union local that represents Sunwing pilots, said of the plan to hire non-Canadian pilots, adding that Labor Minister Seamus O'Regan "needs to step in and stop this." Sunwing will apply with the government to bring in 65 pilots this winter as temporary foreign workers due partly to a "staffing issue" in the summer, according to a Unifor union local memo to pilots citing a meeting last week with airline management. Sunwing is in the midst of being acquired by Canada's second-largest carrier WestJet Airlines, owned by private equity firm Onex Corp . read more It was not clear whether Sunwing has started a formal process to hire foreign pilots. Sunwing did not reply to requests for comment. The memo described a job ad from Czech carrier SmartWings that said "foreign pilots will indeed work (in Canada) under our contract but be paid more than 75% of our pilots." The memo said Sunwing has available pilots in Canada. SmartWings did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Holiday air travel is forecast to boom after a pandemic-induced slump the past two years. Canadian airlines are bracing for a busy Christmas season, with Canada expected to further ease COVID-19 travel restrictions. read more Carriers in the United States and Canada cut thousands of flights this summer as a rebound in travel demand ran into labor shortages. The use of pilots as temporary foreign workers is rare compared with other sectors. In the first half of 2022, Canadian employers were granted permission to fill 32 pilot positions with temporary foreign workers, according to government data. By comparison, 48,485 temporary farm worker permits were issued over the same period. O'Regan met this month with Unifor and the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAMAW), which has a separate complaint about Sunwing giving work to foreigners. A spokeswoman for O'Regan said it was up to an employer to meet requirements to bring in temporary foreign workers. Air Canada's (AC.TO) CEO has said pilots are not an issue for the country's biggest airline. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
st27 Posted September 26, 2022 Share Posted September 26, 2022 I always thought the call sign was “ Sunving” 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boestar Posted September 28, 2022 Share Posted September 28, 2022 yup good old stunned mentality. Stop them from hiring foreign pilots so you can accelerate your path to bankruptcy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moon The Loon Posted September 28, 2022 Share Posted September 28, 2022 This argument has been going on since Vince hired Israeli pilots at City Express. There were DOZENS of internal pilots at City willing and able to upgrade. An excellent example of the failure to stick one's finger in the dam of change. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest2 Posted September 28, 2022 Author Share Posted September 28, 2022 1 hour ago, Moon The Loon said: This argument has been going on since Vince hired Israeli pilots at City Express. There were DOZENS of internal pilots at City willing and able to upgrade. An excellent example of the failure to stick one's finger in the dam of change. Willing and qualified? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
W5 Posted September 29, 2022 Share Posted September 29, 2022 (edited) 22 hours ago, Skeptic said: Willing and qualified? Absolutely. Victor had both Iranians as well as Israeli pilots. The CP was one of them. Edited September 29, 2022 by W5 addition Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest2 Posted September 29, 2022 Author Share Posted September 29, 2022 2 minutes ago, W5 said: Absolutely. Victor had both Iranians as well as Israeli pilots. The CP was one of them. And of couse willing to stand down (furlough) in the non peak times? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moon The Loon Posted September 30, 2022 Share Posted September 30, 2022 21 hours ago, Skeptic said: Willing and qualified? Yup. Maybe not qualified on type but that is just training - a cost Victor (sorry about the typo in my original post) sought to avoid, and did. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest2 Posted September 30, 2022 Author Share Posted September 30, 2022 I wonder how this fits into the maybe deal with WestJet. ? ADM raises concerns about WestJet/Sunwing merger - ch-aviation Airports and airlines oppose Sunwing and WestJet merger - Aviacionline.com Sunwing knew company was about to be sold to Westjet during labour talks, pilots union alleges | CBC News Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moon The Loon Posted September 30, 2022 Share Posted September 30, 2022 10 hours ago, Skeptic said: I wonder how this fits into the maybe deal with WestJet. ? ADM raises concerns about WestJet/Sunwing merger - ch-aviation Airports and airlines oppose Sunwing and WestJet merger - Aviacionline.com Sunwing knew company was about to be sold to Westjet during labour talks, pilots union alleges | CBC News Airline mergers never go well initially. Are Sunwing pilots unionized with a seniority system? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maverick Posted September 30, 2022 Share Posted September 30, 2022 3 hours ago, Moon The Loon said: Airline mergers never go well initially. Are Sunwing pilots unionized with a seniority system? I believe they are. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest2 Posted September 30, 2022 Author Share Posted September 30, 2022 Sunwing Airlines signs new four-year agreement with Unifor Local 7378 SHARE Canadian low-cost carrier Sunwing Airlines has signed a new four-year agreement with pilots represented by trade union Unifor Local 7378. The development comes nearly a month after the two parties reached a tentative agreement. Under the new agreement, Sunwing Airlines will increase wages, enhance benefits and more to provide better working conditions to the employees. The union represents 451 Sunwing Airlines pilots, who operate out of six bases across Canada. These pilots have been furloughed or remain inactive for the past several months due to the ongoing pandemic and other restrictions imposed by the government. Unifor Local 7378 president Barret Armann said: “In the most unprecedented of times while the entire aviation industry in Canada has been shuttered, our pilots came together and this agreement provides a road forward and a plan for all of our members who are suffering financially. “I want to thank the members for their solidarity and the bargaining committee for pushing back on concessions and reaching an agreement we can all be proud of.” The union conducted rallies for months demanding a national aviation plan amid the pandemic. It also presented to parliamentary committees and actively appealed for a national aviation industry recovery plan including financial support. Unifor national president Jerry Dias said: “The fact is these pilots are still waiting for the federal government to support the airline industry with a recovery plan as airlines such as Sunwing continue to lose millions. “Instead of helping, the government continues to impose more travel restrictions without also coming up with a government assistance package as many other nations have done.” Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HST Posted September 30, 2022 Share Posted September 30, 2022 The article above is from Feb. ‘21. The current agreement ends Nov. ‘24. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest2 Posted October 1, 2022 Author Share Posted October 1, 2022 1 hour ago, HST said: The article above is from Feb. ‘21. The current agreement ends Nov. ‘24. most recent that I could find, do you have a copy of the newest one???? Here is a link to the one that expired on November 30, 2020. 1432402a.pdf (labour.gc.ca) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rich Pulman Posted October 2, 2022 Share Posted October 2, 2022 On 9/30/2022 at 8:25 AM, Moon The Loon said: Are Sunwing pilots unionized with a seniority system? Why does it matter? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Zanzibar Posted October 2, 2022 Share Posted October 2, 2022 Perhaps because they may be purchased and merged with wja Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moon The Loon Posted October 2, 2022 Share Posted October 2, 2022 4 hours ago, Rich Pulman said: Why does it matter? I don't believe WJ has a traditional seniority system. Merging the pilot groups may prove difficult. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest2 Posted October 2, 2022 Author Share Posted October 2, 2022 On 9/30/2022 at 4:18 PM, HST said: The article above is from Feb. ‘21. The current agreement ends Nov. ‘24. most recent that I could find, do you have a newer one???? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest2 Posted October 2, 2022 Author Share Posted October 2, 2022 Sat, Sep 10, 2022 WestJet Pilots Notify Management of Negotiations Contracts Set for Review for Another Airline as Pilots Face Difficult Economy The WesJet Master Executive Council of the Air Line Pilots Association has notified WestJet Airlines Management of their intention to open negotiations regarding the group's collective agreement. http://www.aero-news.net/images/content/commair/2022/WestJet-Stock-Airline-0922a_tn.jpeg The pilots group's head, Captain Dave Kingston, said that the pilots have been pulling more than their fair share of weight at the company since 2020 and it's time their services are acknowledged. “For more than two years, our airline has faced the devastating impacts of COVID-19 head-on but is on its way to recovery, thanks in large part to the efforts and sacrifices of this pilot group. For some, those sacrifices included a nearly 70 percent reduction in pay, while close to half of our pilots were furloughed. As we continue our transition back to a pre-pandemic level of operations, our sacrifices must be recognized by WestJet management in our next contract.” The notification means that contract talks will formally begin, though the WestJet/ALPA Negotiating Committee seems optimistic about the outcome of their work, saying that they intend to present company brass with rational proposals consistent with the agreements gained by similar pilot groups in the USA. “Our goal is to reach a fair contract that provides job security and career progression for pilots and stability to the airline,” Kingston said. “We have done our part to help the company remain competitive and expect a new contract that will help attract and retain experienced, qualified pilots who will look at WestJet as a career destination.” FMI:www.alpa.org Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rich Pulman Posted October 2, 2022 Share Posted October 2, 2022 6 hours ago, Moon The Loon said: I don't believe WJ has a traditional seniority system. Merging the pilot groups may prove difficult. Merging two pilot groups is (traditionally) always difficult, regardless of either or both being represented by a union. Even if both groups are represented by the same union, there's no easy path to merging. I had a chat with ALPA about this when I represented the Skyservice pilot group. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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