SUMMER HEAT
Hello Everyone,
Summer is upon us….
While this is cause for celebration for the regular public it is certainly one of the most stressful and busiest time for us.
Allow me to remind what the proper application of “sunscreen “entails for us.
Safety is always first!
You cannot be disciplined for following an SOP.
I understand how dedicated we are to getting our customers to their gates in a timely manner. However, as the amount of TEV violations continues to thrive let me remind you that an LOR (letter of reprimand) can stay on your file for up to 24 months. A customer missing their flight / connection because you were driving at a walking pace does not…
In the unlikely event of an oversold flight ,which is essentially all of them, please be mindful that you are expected to ask for volunteers .You are not responsible for revenue managements decisions to oversell flights; but you are to follow SOPs to mitigate the situation. I would encourage to reach out to your leads to discuss compensation in advance if possible. Always thoroughly document in CM all pertinent information on a flight.
Summer Heat
Last November the company agreed that they would consider affording us some uniform related leniency. It was agreed that in area like jazz on the ramp, CESs would be allowed to remove their vest and scarves/ ties.
I was just advised yesterday that the Company has now decided that they want us to wear the scarves/ ties regardless of the intolerable heat.
I encourage you all to file a report with the assistance of your health and safety representatives at District101HS@unifor2002.org. We need substantiation to get the company to reconsider its position. I can assure that your health and safety representatives and your union at large are taking the issue very seriously.
Correspondence
When you are addressing your concerns to the union, kindly communicate with us with a non-AC email. The Company has full access to your AC emails.
If you wish to send the company a statement , I would highly recommend that you allow the union to read your statements before you send them.
Please exercise extreme caution when you communicate with the Company, especially in writing .I have witnessed the Company including emails sent to them by an employee in their briefs to prove their argument against them in arbitration.
Eric, his team and I are here to offer you council. Please take full advantage of it.
What’s on the horizon.
Share Trust
The council of unions is bound by non-disclosure agreements and agreed to communicate as one unit. For the latest update on the share trust please visit:
Pay Equity
A disclaimer is in order. I am not a pay equity expert or spokesperson. The Bargaining Committee has however received training on the issue.
Part of the pay equity Act reads:
“Achieve pay equity through proactive means by redressing the systemic gender-based discrimination in the compensation practices and systems of employers that is experienced by employees who occupy positions in predominantly female job classes”
To simplify it: an evaluation of jobs will allocate a certain “value” to a profession. If a gap is found between professions that are considered female (like CES) and their similarly valued male counterparts, the Company will have to adjust the pay of the female job and match it to the males.
For example;
An administration professional is considered female and valued at a 7;A machinist is male and also valued at a 7.
If the administration compensation averages $50000/year versus $62000 for the machinist, the expectation is that the administration compensation will be raised to $62000.
Furthermore, the administration specialists are to receive a retroactive back pay dating from the day pay equity came into force on August 31,2021.
The adjustment is always up. No profession is expected to incur losses in wages.
The example used is solely for illustrative purposes and is not necessarily rooted in reality or facts.
There is a new Sheriff in town.
As I am sure you are aware, there is a new in terminal operations manager.
In two weeks our DC, a few VCs, a HS Rep and I will formally meet with the Company.
We will be discussing the many issues we face in YVR. The topics of ITD, overzealous CEMs and premature disciplinary actions are some of the subjects we will be discussing.
We are open to your suggestions, and we will be more than happy to discuss them with the Company.
Kindly remember that changes take time: “there are no shortcuts to any place worth going” (Beverly Sills).
I am comfortable saying that I am cautiously optimistic. Local management seems genuinely willing to engage and collaborate with the Union.
O CANADA!
With the discoveries of unmarked children’s graves, this celebration has become triggering and painful to many.
I will choose to embrace all that our country is: the weight of our past, our present struggles; hope for the future.
This July, I want to conclude this newsletter by wishing you a very Happy belated Canada Day.
Thank you for your readership.
In Solidarity and Iron Focus.
S.G