Over the past week we have had several members reach out with questions about the CEWS program. They advised us that they had heard that other airlines or bargaining units within Air Canada/Air Canada Rouge were being granted an extension to the CEWS program, and many of them were wondering if we could have the same outcome. To reiterate the message from our previous bulletins, the Company was not interested in extending the CEWS for the entire membership. In addition to this and despite our many attempts, this was not something the Company wanted to explore for the whole membership.

Instead we were offered, at the same time as mitigations, an extension to the CEWS program for a small percentage of the membership.  The condition for this was that it would not be bid on, would not follow seniority and we had to sign off on a maximum of 600 people on CEWS for June and July only. The Company wanted our members essentially on standby.

The Company is not interested in following the CEWS program like other airlines are, such as Air Transat, WestJet and Sunwing and further the reality is that we already have a mechanism in our collective agreement for extra staffing, it is called Reserve. The Company wanted a third classification of workers earning less money and your Union unanimously disagreed with this. Our position was that these members be kept on reserve and earn full salary. As a result of our refusal to extend the CEWS to that small percentage requested by Air Canada, 249 more members were not laid off and the full mitigation list was actioned allowing more members to be employed, and more members were awarded their chosen mitigation.  For every mitigation, there is a job saved. We also compared year-over-year reserve numbers for June and have seen a significantly higher percentage of members on reserve in June 2020.  This clearly demonstrates that more of our members were kept on reserve in June, at full pay. This was a further reduction in the amount of layoffs.

Our decision to hold the line on not introducing a third classification of lower paid members essentially on reserve but getting paid less was needed .  We are confident that in addition to the increase in reserve numbers that we will see more members returned to work in the short-term. Our goal is always to protect and defend the rights of the membership as a whole and we will continue to do so with every member on side.

If the Company would have used the CEWS program as intended, we would not see thousands of our members on lay off status. We have expressed our concerns with the CEWS program not being afforded to our members to the Company, CUPE National, Canadian Government Officials, and the media.

For further clarity, the CEWS program is still active for all members on payroll. CEWS is a wage subsidy that the employer receives.  This means that for everyone currently active, the Company is claiming a portion of your wage back to the government.  You are being paid 100% of what you are entitled to, but the company is getting a 75% subsidy on those wages under CEWS.  Previously we saw it bid on and offered to all those that would have otherwise been laid off or mitigated, that is the current difference.

There are also countless rumours going around that IAM and Unifor have all there members on CEWS.  This is not correct, they have CEWS as a reserve model, and in limited numbers, we have been in consultation with all the Unionized groups on this. ACPA has also not had the CEWS program extended.

We again want to reiterate, the Union works for you, we fight for you and advocate for you.  We have been doing this the entire time.  There was no other reason to deny CEWS other than it was not a benefit to pay people less than what they would make being fully active, it violated seniority and it was limited in duration and prohibited members from being paid 100% of their salary to sit reserve. In essence, we enforced and followed the Collective Agreement.

In solidarity,

On Friday many of you received your generic layoff notices from Air Canada and Air Canada Rouge. In our opinion these should have been individually addressed to you.  We are hopeful that for each of you that reached out to us on this, that you also reached out directly to the employer.  This is something we agree that needs to change, you are not a number, you are a person, and at a time like this consideration and compassion should be shown.

The following information is designed to assist you with regards to helping you navigate the policies that govern the layoffs that some of our members will face. Full details were included in your layoff notice. If you have any questions about the policies, we encourage you to reach out to the employer for clarity. Over the weekend many of you have written in with questions and we have done our best to compile some of the most common below:

Do I continue to be a Union member while on layoff status?
Yes, you are still considered a member while you retain recall rights. You may participate in membership meetings and participate in any elections/referendums that take place while you are on layoff status.

Do I apply for EI Regular Benefits or the CERB?
As you have been laid-off you should apply for EI Regular Benefits through Service Canada, which will initially be paid out as the CERB and then you will move to EI. More information can be found here or by contacting Service Canada: https://www.canada.ca/en/services/benefits/ei/ei-regular-benefit.html.

Your ROE will be sent directly to Service Canada by the employer, but you should apply as of your layoff date June 7^th.

Do I need to maintain my health, dental, and life insurance benefits?
The maintaining of your benefits is optional and you do not need to extend them during your layoff unless you choose to. The only exception to this is for residents of Quebec who need to maintain drug coverage as per la Régie de l’assurance-maladie du Québec (RAMQ).  Information on the cost and process to maintain your benefits will be sent within 10 days of your official layoff. In the meantime, you maintain coverage until the end of June.

Will I maintain access to Employee Assistance Program (EAP)?
Mainline members on layoff will still have access to the Employee Assistance Program until December 31, 2020.

Do I maintain travel benefits?
While on layoff, you will be granted Air Canada personal travel privileges – including your spouse, dependent children, parents, and partners, with the exception of OAL travel. Travel is permitted for 365 days from the date of layoff.

Why are we not receiving severance pay as outline in the Labour Code?
Certain types of layoffs are not considered terminations under the Canada Labour Code.  If the layoff is for more than three months but not more than 12 months, and the employee maintains recall rights pursuant to Collective Agreement (Article 17.20), the layoff is not considered termination of employment.  Without termination of employment, there is not an entitlement to severance.

How does the recall process work?
The recall provision for both Mainline and Rouge members can be found at Article 17.16 of the Collective Agreement. Master Seniority governs recalls and you will be contacted for the first available position at either Mainline or Rouge that your seniority entitles you.  You are not forced to transfer between companies and can decline a recall if it is not to the point of layoff. Your point of layoff is your current home base at your current airline (I.e. Toronto Base at Air Canada Mainline).

Recall notices will be sent by registered mail to the address on file with the Employer.

For Mainline members please provide any changes via the HR Connex Home Page under the section “Personal Information change” or contact the Employee Care Team at 1-833-847-EMPL (3675).

For Rouge members, please provide any changes to your personal information through Success Factors https://hcm17.sapsf.com/login?company=ACLG#/login. In addition, telephone contact numbers must be updated in CrewLink.

We encourage you to reference the layoff notice you received for any further questions regarding the layoff process.

Your Union will be monitoring the seniority lists for recalls, absences and anomalies and will ensure that the Collective Agreement is adhered to for all processes.  Please continue to reach out as needed.

In extreme solidarity,

The Company has completed the mitigation award and results will be going out shortly. Please check your Air Canada emails. The Company had hoped to finalize the award yesterday, but once reviewed with the Union there were some concerns of members being denied 6-month Special Leaves and 4-month RBPs. Thankfully, the Company agreed on a without prejudice or precedent basis to adjust the award and all members eligible to be active for June 2020 were awarded mitigation if they bid for them.

Here are the final numbers:

*The above noted are not applicable to Rouge as there is no flying awarded at this seniority level.

Following the Mitigation Program, the resulting surplus was 4,600 Active Mainline Members and 1,355 Active Rouge Members. Layoff Notices will be sent to your Air Canada email.  We will be in touch early next week with more information on the layoff provisions and recall processes found in the Collective Agreement.

For those of you awarded an RBP, please be mindful that bidding closes tomorrow morning, May 30, 2020, so you may wish to adjust your bid based on your reduced blocking window.

We know that this news is going to have a profound impact on the lives of each of you. There may be a tendency to feel alone and unsupported. We want you to remember that your Union is almost 10,000 strong and we will continue to be here for you.  We will get through this together and will emerge from this crisis wiser, determined, and focused.  We are continually available, never hesitate to reach out if you are in need.

In solidarity,