Dear Members,

In a recent bulletin from your Component President and Health and Safety Committee (see link here) https://mailchi.mp/f4eae6b2f520/coronavirus-update-25-327701?e=5318069517 we requested stories from you about your experiences with being denied health, dental, medical and other basic services due to your profession and/or having travelled in the previous 14 days. We received timely and well written responses from many of you. We reviewed all of this feedback and had a lengthy conversation with the Public Health Agency of Canada and a quarantine officer from the Government of Canada.

They listened to our concerns and real-life examples and also understood how difficult this has been for so many of our members. You have taken on the important and very challenging role as an essential services worker yet at the same time are having a stigma attached to your profession. PHAC took away two important tasks from our call:

• We discussed the 3-digit exemption code for the ArriveCan app, and if more needs to be done to raise awareness about this new process both amongst aircrew but also CBSA officers. They will follow up with the quarantine office to see if there is something that can be done to alleviate the problem of nuisance emails and calls when you return home from work outside the country.

 

• One idea discussed on the call is that guidance be issued by the PHAC to the various professional associations that oversee disciplines such as dentistry, physiotherapy etc. They will explore internally within the PHAC what can be done to ensure that our members aren’t denied essential services – particularly at acute care centres like hospitals as a starting point.

Following the call, we were tasked with a follow up to the membership. In this instance we are requesting your feedback and examples in which your own health care provider/health care practitioner found a solution to providing treatment for you while balancing their concerns.  We believe that this may help your Union and the PHAC to find creative ways to tackle this problem.

The reality is that there are many individual workers within the Health Care sector in Canada who are simply making decisions based on their own fears and/or following guidance about exposure to those who have travelled outside of the country.   We are sending a call out to find how others who treat and care for you or members of your family who have found a workaround for these concerns. If you have a story of unique and creative ways that your health care and medical practitioners have found to treat you or your family, we want to hear about it. We hope that this information can provide some insight into what can be achieved so that our members are not left to fend for themselves in these difficult times when seeking medical care.

It was agreed that we would hold a follow-up call over the coming two weeks and it would be good to show up with some constructive ideas straight from our members. Please send your experiences to contact@accomponent.ca.

 

The Union is following up with the Public Health Agency of Canada regarding members being denied basic services due to their profession and/or having travelled in the previous 14 days.

We urgently need members to provide us with their recent experiences, in the greatest amount of detail possible, if they have been denied services.

Examples of basic services might include:

• Medical appointments
• Dental appointments
• Diagnostic service appointments such as scans and medical tests
• Paramedical services such as physiotherapy
• Childcare
• Schooling (including policies that state your child won’t be able to go to school once it starts)
• Grocery stores, etc.

Details that are especially useful:

• Approximate date of refusal and location of the refusal.
• Were you denied because of your profession in general (cabin crew), or because you had travelled within the past 14 days, or because you had travelled internationally in the past 14 days?
• Did you show the TC-issued exemption letter? Did it make a difference? If not, did they say why?
• Has denial of services cause you actual or potential harm (ex. Did you have to postpone a medical procedure)?
• Has denial of services been extended to your family (ex. Child not able to go to daycare or school etc.)?

Please send your comments to contact@accomponent.ca with the title “Denial of Services & Your Name & Your Employee Number & Your Base”.
In Solidarity,

Did you know that as per Transport Canada’s Order Respecting Certain Requirements for Civil Aviation Due to COVID-19, No. 5, every airline must catalogue and report each reported occurrence of non-compliance with mask rules?

37 If, during a flight that a private operator or air carrier operates, a person refuses to comply with an instruction given by a crew member with respect to wearing a face mask, the private operator or air carrier must
(a) keep a record of
     (i) the date and flight number,
     (ii) the person’s name and contact information,
     (iii) the person’s seat number, and
     (iv) the circumstances related to the refusal to comply; and
(b) inform the Minister as soon as feasible of any record created under paragraph (a).

Many of our members have reported cases of blatant disregard to the mask rules and have asked why more is not being done. Please note that by reporting such incidents, the company is obligated to keep track and is also required to inform the Ministry who will then be in a better position to assess whether further regulatory action needs to be taken.

To file a disruptive/unruly passenger e-report:

• Log into the AQD app on the SD iPad
• Access SIMS reporting system via the direct link: sims.aircanada.ca
• Access SIMS via ACAeronet>Safety>Submit a report/SIMS

The SIMS system is NOT fully compatible with mobile browsers. If you experience difficulty, try using a computer.

The Union is NOT copied on disruptive unruly passenger reports. If you want us to be in the know, take a screenshot or copy/paste into an email.

You can reach the Union by emailing contact@accomponent.ca for non-urgent matters, and 247@accomponent.ca for issues requiring a response before the next business day.

In solidarity,

We have been swamped yet again with messages of all kinds related to the company’s recent announcement that it will be refreshing the offerings to customers shortly.

In an effort to represent you, we often find ourselves personally overloaded and equally as frustrated as you with the issues at hand. We keep working even though we are all feeling overwhelmed. We are here for you and will continue to be.

Please read this bulletin in its entirety as it may answer many of your questions and/or concerns.

What has the Union said so far:

• We are still very much in the throes of a pandemic and any service should reflect that.
• Any change should reflect the core tenets of the current service:
  • Limiting the number or times and duration we go out in the aisle.
  • Limiting the number of “touchpoints” with customers.
  • Limiting prolonged verbal discussion with customers.
  • Ensuring an expeditious flow through the cabin for the limited service offering, limiting exposure.
• The Union is not comfortable with a return to service levels that exceed this presently.

Some of the challenges that have been raised during these discussions:

• Depending where we fly, competitors are offering increased product. The company has conveyed that it does not intend to match this. However, management has made it very clear that if we are to survive in these markets, we must go beyond a bottle of water 2-3 times per flight and take steps to differentiate between the classes.
• Both the Union and company have heard from members who are increasingly being put in the difficult position of explaining our very limited product, while restaurants, bars and services are reopening and deemed safe by government as well as health authorities. The Union has made it clear that the there is a need to diffuse customer frustration before it makes its way onboard.
• The severity of the pandemic varies by destination. There may be a second wave in certain regions and there is a need to be prepared to able to adapt accordingly.

Assurances we have received in our dialogue with the company:

• The company has made good on a promise to regularly consult and update the Union as it figures out what kind of products/services it is going to offer for the foreseeable future.
• The company has, in many cases, accepted the Union’s comments/concerns and proposed changes.
• In other cases, there is a commitment from management to continue reviewing your comments on an ongoing basis, consult with the Union, and make changes if necessary.
• Either way, the company has repeatedly made it clear to the Union that it isn’t going back to “business as usual”, that it recognizes there is still a pandemic and that it needs to very cautiously reinvent itself in order to succeed in this “new normal”. While it is obviously in all our best interest for the company to prosper, the Union still has some outstanding concerns about its plans and remains committed to addressing those on your behalf.

Some of the things that we have asked for and that the company has worked into its service plan:

• VERY limited assortment of drinks. Ex. In Economy/PY there will be no ice/lemon and beverage options will ONLY include:
  • Red or White wine
  • 3 selections of soft drinks (Coke, Diet Coke, Ginger Ale)
  • Black coffee/tea
• Providing the full can/split with a disposable cup in all classes. This keeps time serving similar to providing a bottle and eliminates request for seconds from customers.
• No coffee/tea with pickup. Hot beverages will be combined with meal service.
• Everything that we would otherwise individually offer to the customer will be grouped and packaged together:
  • Amenity kits combined with CleanCare+ kits and headphones in Signature Class, PY and Y (no amenity kit in Y).
  • The entire meal in all classes will remain in a box. A hot casserole will be added to Signature class boxes prior to going out into the aisle.
  • Coffee/Tea condiments (cream, milk, sugar, sweetener, swizzle stick) will all be pre-packaged together eliminating the “how do you take it” conversation and up to 3 contacts.
• A menu card will be included with meals in all classes. In Signature Class it will include a message explaining the reduced service offering, expediting, or eliminating the need to have that discussion with clients.
• Service expectations and a warning for those with dietary restrictions will be issued ahead of time via targeted emails, texts, app notifications, and lounge announcements to reduce time spent explaining onboard.
• A commitment to maintain current PPE options for employees onboard is at the core of the company’s current plan.

How to make your voice heard:
We are working around the clock to make sure your concerns are heard and making a difference as the company revamps its product and service level. We cannot say “we saw things on Facebook” when we discuss matters with management. It is untraceable and citing discussions we see could violate the trust we have as colleagues. The company also sees the things on Facebook but requires them to be officially reported for similar reasons. Because of this Facebook is best left for casual discussions – not reporting issues you want fixed. Please help us do our jobs so that you can come to work and confidently do yours, REPORT:

• If you have the time to vent on Facebook or other platforms, you should have already reported your issue officially – no exceptions.
• For concerns about potential or actual hazards, file a health and safety complaint e-report that the company is guaranteed to see, that your Union reps see, and which will contribute to company stats used to make the workplace safer.

1. From ACAeronet > safety > Submit a report/SIMS
   2. Direct web link: sims.aircanada.ca
   3. AQD iPad app is you are an SD. If you are an SD filling out a report for an FA on your iPad it is very important to ensure that you fill in their name as the reporting employee so that the system attributes it to them, not you.

   If you are filing your report online:
   4. You will pass through two login screens
   5. Click on the small (it’s very small!) e-report tab in the top left of the screen
   6. On the next screen, select health and safety complaintfrom the menu on the right
   7. A pop-up will appear
   8. Remember to use your Air Canada email address
   9. Before clicking “submit” verify the “set department” button just to the left and ensure IFS DEPARTMENT is selected.
   10. We strongly suggest typing the text of your complaint in a blank email so that it isn’t lost if there is a problem submitting.
   11. Your union H&S reps will be able to see your report in the safety system but send us an email to let us know you’ve submitted it with the report reference number.

   We remain available to our members during this difficult time. Stop by one of our offices, or write to contact@accomponent.ca (non-urgent) or 247@accomponent.ca (questions that can’t wait until the next business day).

In Solidarity,