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Machinists Union members ratify agreement with Air Canada |
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| FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Machinists Union members ratify agreement with Air Canada MONTREAL– Members of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAMAW) have voted by a majority to ratify a new collective agreement with Air Canada in an attempt to help save the embattled airline. The vote was conducted over the past two weeks amongst the 11,000 members, following a cross-Canada tour by union leaders to explain details of the tentative agreement, reached on May 27, in the face of bankruptcy of the airline. IAMAW Canadian General Vice President Dave Ritchie said despite the ratification by the Machinists Union members, the future of the carrier is still uncertain. “The process is not over,” Ritchie said. “Air Canada still has a number of outstanding issues to resolve with its creditors and some other unions still have not ratified their tentative agreements with the airline. We said from the beginning we wanted to be part of the solution to Air Canada’s problems. We’ve now done our part; we can only hope others will do the same.” Ritchie also sharply criticized the Federal Liberal Government for its “abysmal failure to deal with the crisis facing Canada’s flagship carrier. It is an absolute disgrace that the working people of Canada have had to make enormous financial sacrifices to help save the airline in the absence of any government assistance.” He pointed to the United States where troubled carriers there have benefited from massive federal government assistance. The agreement means members will:
It also means an anticipated reduction in the workforce by1,399 IAMAW members. |
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