Air Canada flight attendants lose severance pay fight, CUPE says
An arbitrator has declined to award severance pay to Air Canada flight attendants who will be laid off when the airline closes its bases in Halifax and Winnipeg and cuts jobs in Vancouver, their union said Tuesday.
Arbitrator Brian Keller was appointed on Aug. 19 to develop an adjustment program to mitigate the effects of laying off more than 500 flight attendants.
His ruling gives the attendants the choice of terminating their employment or continuing to work on an adjusted basis such as job sharing, possibly with the aid of supplemental Employment Insurance payments.
"The majority of the attendants get virtually nothing to help them cope with the life changes they now have to deal with," Lesley Swann, president of the Air Canada component of the Canadian Union of Public Employees, said in a release.
The airline will provide minimal relocation support for attendants who bump employees in other locations, some commuting assistance and a job sharing option for only some of those choosing to stay with the airline, the union said.
Air Canada will pay $5.5 million toward the cost of job sharing arrangements, commuting expenses, special leaves, relocation and counselling.
For attendants choosing to stay with the airline, there will be 300 shared blocks of flying offered — 200 in Toronto and 100 in Vancouver — for no longer than 36 months.
Ten homeowners and 10 renters in each of Halifax and Winnipeg will be eligible for relocation allowances of $35,000 and $15,000 respectively. They will be chosen based on seniority.
A maximum of 200 special leaves will be offered to attendants for up to 36 months, during which time they will retain seniority, service, pay progression and benefits.
Since Air Canada's layoff announcement in July, CUPE has mounted a campaign to fight the cuts and keep the Halifax and Winnipeg bases open.
The union said the arbitrator's ruling did not address the base closure issue and it plans to continue the campaign, which has included public rallies and lobbying politicians and federal officials to intervene.
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