Lisa Raymond, Author at AC Component

Cabin Air Quality

Lisa Raymond on November 21, 2019

Recently, there has been a surge in members seeking help and information related to cabin fume events.

There are 2 types of fume events: The first is low, chronic exposure, each time the engines start up or change speed on aircraft that draw cabin air from the engines. These are under-reported because they’re often not noticeable, but still negatively affect our health. The second type, and the one we are more familiar with, is an acute fume event which occurs when there is a mechanical problem that allows a more significant amount of engine oil or hydraulic fluid into the cabin air supply system. This is what commonly gets reported as a ‘dirty sock’ or “gym-bag” or “acrid” smell in the cabin.

Your Union is here to advocate for your health and safety and is available to offer support if you experience or have ever experienced a fume event. Please email air@accomponent.ca or click HERE for a copy of the information provided by the union. There is an automatic response on this email that will give you all the necessary medical information for your doctor and the reporting steps to follow.

Some members have reported that the company provides a FAQ document to crews who experience fume events. It is the Union’s firm position that this document contains many errors and omissions in fact. If you have received this FAQ document, please contact us.

The Air Canada Component of CUPE, alongside its CUPE airlines, is a member of the Global Cabin Air Quality Executive. This organization, comprised of labour organizations from around the world, supports research and advocacy for clean cabin air. The GCAQE has extensive information on its website at https://www.gcaqe.org/.

In solidarity,

Your Air Canada Component of CUPE Health and Safety Committee

A Message From Your Health & Safety and Mobilization & Engagement Committees

Lisa Raymond on November 21, 2019

On November 13, 2019 Component Health and Safety Chair, Jordan Bray-Stone, and Component Mobilization and Engagement Chair, Nicola Schnell, attended the Coalition of Flight Attendants meeting in Dallas, Texas. The Coalition meets under the loose mandate of discussing collective goals and issues of mutual interest. APFA, the union representing the cabin crew at American Airlines Mainline, hosted the meeting and the five other unions that represent most US-based Flight Attendants were in attendance along with Air Canada Component of CUPE.

Some of the issues discussed included bargaining updates, uniforms, 737 max, air quality, secure stowage for crew belongings onboard, alcohol and drug policies, fatigue and how seat pitch affects evacuation times.

Of special note was the guest speaker Doctor Susan Michaelis. She is a former pilot for an Australian airline who is now recognized as a leading global aviation health and safety consultant and researcher in the field of aircraft contaminated air supplies and hazardous substances. She is passionate about the health of aircrew in relation to fume events. The under-reporting and lack of information about this topic and how it negatively affects our members health is very concerning. Your Component Health & Safety Committee will be issuing a bulletin shortly with more information on this subject.

The meeting was a great success and we were welcomed by our American flight attendants. At a time when workers’ rights seem to be under constant threat, the solidarity exhibited by the group was encouraging. We are very thankful to the APFA for hosting this valuable event and look forward to continued collaboration on the many issues affecting our industry.

In Solidarity,

Jordan Bray-Stone
Chair, Health & Safety Committee

Nicola Schnell
Chair, Mobilization and Engagement Committee

An Update From Your President

Lisa Raymond on November 19, 2019

Coalition of Flight Attendant Meeting

The Air Canada Component of CUPE was recently invited to the Coalition of Flight Attendants Unions in Dallas, Texas. Our Component Vice President, Theresa Mitchell and I have been passionate about building bridges with other flight attendant unions in North America. Along with the Air Canada Component, APFA, TWU, IBT and the GCAQE were present to discuss various topics such as Cabin Air Quality, Fatigue, Rest Periods, as well as Labour Negotiations. As this took place during our current negotiations, we were fortunate enough to have Jordan Bray-Stone, Health and Safety Chairperson, and Nicola Schnell, Mobilization and Engagement Chairperson, attend on our behalf. They will be sending out more information to the members, and came back engaged, excited and mobilized!

OBSM Reporting
On a daily and sometimes hourly basis, your Union receives disturbing reports related to the OBSM programs. Each report is followed up on and shared with the company.

We are happy to report that:
1. We do not have demotions happening as we once did;
2. Our members are not being forced to take a massive pay cut as they once were; and
3. Discipline has not started at one of the most extreme levels as it previously had.

The Union unfortunately was advised that the next phase of OBSM SD Assessments is underway. We were advised when it would start and were given a debrief on the changes made to the program; the open communication and advance notice is appreciated. As we can all agree, neither the Union, nor its members, are accepting a program where a managers only job is to come onto our aircrafts and evaluate us with an iPad and limited communication.

As your Component Officers often say – how is this effective? How is it that the company can allow a behaviour that it feels is not appropriate to continue on a flight, and then document and follow-up on it post flight?

The Union is again reviewing the current OBSM SD assessments and discipline, it is never ending, but we hear you loud and clear, and we appreciate all your feedback.

The Union will never be happy with a program that focuses more on service timing, grooming and cabin lighting than it does on the once genuine service we all personally strive to offer.

Offering Glowing-Hearted Hospitality is only worth 4.5%, the same as Cabin Lighting.

Cabin Air Quality
Your Union takes Cabin Air Quality seriously. We reach out each time we are advised of an issue to ensure you know the protocol and process. Remember you can email air@accomponent.ca anytime you have a fume event or air quality issue and immediately have valuable information at your fingertips. Please report any issues or findings with cabin air to your union for immediate review and follow up. Remember, safety lies with each of us, and in reporting issues as they arise, we are helping the next crew and ourselves in a safer work environment.

Bargaining
The Union met last week with the employer. There is not much to report other than we go back December 9, 2019 for a planned full week of bargaining.

Minimum Wage Rouge
The Union had met with the employer on Tuesday, November 12, 2019. The day was an incredibly long day, where we discussed the minimum wage grievance at Air Canada Rouge. There was unfortunately no resolution and we are booking another date to move this very important issue forward for a final settlement. Minimum wage is a minimum standard, and currently the Union believes its members in Ontario are not making the minimum while in training or doing ground duties.

Deadheading in Cabin Jumpseat
The Union has received multiple reports over the last two weeks regarding members either being assigned jumpseats for deadhead travel, or being requested to travel in a jumpseat, and forfeit their seat for additional passengers. The Union maintains that ALL members deadheading are to deadhead in an assigned passenger seat. You are traveling as a passenger and are entitled to a proper seat to maintain your comfort. If you are requested to, or are assigned a jumpseat, please report this to your local union office.

Bill C86 – New Personal Responsibility Leave provisions
The Company recently advised the Union on how the new provisions for Personal Responsibility Leave under the Canada Labour Code will be managed.

This leave is intended to provide workers with time to address personal illness, health care, care of family members, or education-related responsibilities. The new Code provisions provide that the first three days are paid, and the fourth and fifth days are not. In general, the leave days used are recorded in 24 hour increments.

All Mainline and Rouge members are entitled to the full five days, the first three of which will be paid based on each member’s cycle or pairing. A single duty day pairing that touches two (2) calendar days with less than 24 hours away from home base would be the equivalent of one (1) day of leave. A pairing that has more than 24 hours but less than 48 hours 1 minute would be the equivalent of two (2) days of leave, and so on. Please see below for examples.

***If you are assigned a 3-day SYD worth 33:00CR, you will be paid for the pairing and will utilize three (3) days of leave. This is because the SYD pairing is away from home base for 57 hours (so, more than 48:00 but less than 72:01). If you take the full five (5) days of leave, the next two (2) would be unpaid.

***If you are assigned a 4-day pairing worth 20:00CR and you take five (5) days of leave, you will be paid for the flight credits contained within the first three 24 hour periods. The 4^th and 5^th periods would not be paid. This is akin to running out of sick days mid pairing.

Essentially, the leave days are calculated in increments of 24 hours or less, beginning from the report time of the missed pairing. Please note that you will need to reach out to your manger to request the leave. Please reach out to your local if you have already taken this leave and believe the payment was handled differently than described above.

Air Canada Component Legal
At the beginning of the term, your Component Officers decided to venture down the path of hiring our own, independent lawyer to join us at Belfield. We wanted someone to grow with our vision, monitor the flow of grievances, and be specialized in dealing with a range of issues specific to flight attendants. We have been incredibly fortunate to have Kim Veller join us full time in September 2019. Kim has been assisting us all on many fronts, from bargaining to monthly review and regular day to day grievance handling.

Online Survey
For those of you that have filled out the survey, thank you, your comments are reviewed and we are actioning them daily. For those of you that have not, please feel free to click this link https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/9XNW62D and fill it out. Please note the survey closes at 4:00pm EST on Friday, November 22, 2019.

Name Brevets – Rouge
We understand that the recent bulletin regarding Name Brevets went to all members and has resulted in some confusion amongst Rouge members. We would like to point out that the information in that bulletin is specific to mainline members only. Although your union is not in agreement, wearing a name tag is still a company requirement at Rouge.

December Flying
Having been the Reserve Committee Chair for many years over the busiest month of the year, I know many of you will reach out, and for some it will be the first time contacting your local office.

If you are on Reserve for December, you can find your Reserve Handbook HERE.

If you are a Blockholder, you will be able to find your Collective Agreement HERE.

Focus in on your reassignment language, please click HERE to a view a reassignment bulletin that the union previously issued.

For a list of contact information, click HERE.

Lastly, all this and more information can be found on the Component Website at www.accomponent.ca.

Wishing each of you an amazing December 2019, reach out anytime,

Wesley Lesosky
President, Air Canada Component of CUPE

Name Brevets

Lisa Raymond on November 18, 2019

On August 2, 2016, Arbitrator Louisa Davie issued an interim award relating to name brevets. Click HERE to view. On April 3, 2019, Arbitrator Davie issued an award affirming her earlier decision. Click HERE to view.

Per the April 3, 2019 award, “[u]nless the parties agree otherwise in their negotiations for the 2019-2022 collective agreement, the Employer shall, on or before September 1, 2019, provide employees with a text-based position title brevet. The Employer can do so by (a) redesigning the current brevet to include a text-based position title, or (b) designing a new brevet which includes a text-based position title, or (c) designing a text-based position title brevet to be worn together with the first name brevet.”

The effect of the interim award is that Air Canada will maintain three brevet options.

You have the following three options:

Wearing a brevet consisting of a first name only and position title;
Wearing a brevet consisting of an approved first name pseudonym and position title;
Not wearing a brevet.

If you require further information, please do not hesitate to contact your Local.

In solidarity,

Workload Increase – New Service Procedures

Lisa Raymond on November 15, 2019

Your time and health are valuable, and you should not be expected to work without proper breaks and/or crew rest.

This is an issue that has plagued us for years. No matter what “new” service or type trials are imposed upon us, we always take it upon ourselves to ensure that our passengers are not inconvenienced or missing out, sometimes to the detriment of our health.

In recent months Air Canada has provided us with information regarding new type trials and “enhanced” services on various flights. Most recently, this includes hot towels, ice cream, farewell chocolates, and enhanced bar services in Y Class, as well as a pre-meal bar, linen service, and “increased cabin coverage” in PY. As well the already busy aft-galley person will be making hot chocolate from individual packages and sending bar carts out with five silex pots on top which is an accident waiting to happen.

There is no need to remind you that we are already working at our maximum capacity. We do not understand how it can be that the Company is creating even more duties for an already strapped work force. On top of these additions to service, we are still expected to deliver within the required service times.

Added to that pressure, we have OBSMs on-board watching every move that we make, and we are hoping that our hairdos hold out, our nail polish doesn’t chip, and our shoes don’t get scuffed. What if we mistakenly wear our apron in the aisle or forget that our glasses are on our head?

There is only so much that any number of people can do. If you fill a cup with water, the glass is full. There is no more that can be added.

If you want more water, you are going to need another glass. This analogy translates well to our members and in our view, if you want to have more service then the only logical approach is to increase the amount of crew members onboard.

We recognise that the Company has assigned hand-selected Service Directors and Flight Attendants to act as coaches. The irony is not lost on us that these roles could be better served by just adding crew members.

We would like to give pause and remember our true purpose onboard the aircraft. Our primary mission is passenger safety. This becomes patently clear when there is a medical situation, a disruptive passenger, or during those very rare occasions when an aircraft or its occupants are placed in jeopardy. It is then that our invaluable skills, wisdom, knowledge of the equipment, and expert execution of the procedures are obvious.

We would like to ask that you keep in mind your own limitations and perform your duties as assigned but not to the detriment of your health. Take your breaks as assigned, including rest breaks and proper hydration. As with all things that we do, safety is our top concern and should come before all else.

If you are working flights and find that there is not sufficient time to complete the required safety duties, we ask that you complete the Health and Safety Concern forms that are provided.

In order for us to help to change these impossible conditions, we benefit from your feedback. This information will give us the evidence required to give teeth to any potential grievance.

Please submit your Health and Safety Concern forms. If you have statements regarding service limitations and impossibilities, please send them to contact@accomponent.ca.

In solidarity,

Cabin Air Quality

A Message From Your Health & Safety and Mobilization & Engagement Committees

An Update From Your President

Name Brevets

Workload Increase – New Service Procedures

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