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Until this moment I have been forced to listen while media and politicians alike have told me "what Canadians think". In all that time they never once asked.
This is just the voice of an ordinary Canadian yelling back at the radio -
"You don't speak for me."
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Because Unions are so good for everyone.
Yay, WestJet Airlines Ltd.!
Eat’em raw Calgary.
Down with Unions, Down with Crown Corporations!
If I CAN’t fly Westjet I really question if I have to go or not.
Haven’t used AC for over 15 years. Their service is atrocious.
Does Air Canada make a profit every year,or most years? What’s the bottom line with this corporation,do they pay their own way or are they another taxpayer subsidized mismanaged outfit like CBC?
Not to sound nasty, but why are all the Air Canada customer service reps, shown picketing in the article at the link, fat?
Seniority over merit?
My sympathy evaporated when I read:
“Mr. Fitzpatrick said the offer on the table that was rejected by the union would have allowed CAW members to retire at 55 after 25 years of service without any reduction of benefits, and current retirees would not have been impacted at all.”
FWIW, I’ve flown WestJet and was not all that impressed. Now Porter Airlines – that’s a different story. Flying refined indeed.
Isn’t Air Canada overdue for its once a decade insolvency? It should be filing for CCAA any day now…
The last time I remember flying AC was to Expo 1986.
We have flown a few times each year since. It has been WJ every time after it’s inception in 1995.
We have never! ever! had an issue with WJ – not even one, not even the slightest problem.
Three things to remember when booking a flight
WESTJET WESTJET WESTJET
Simple observation that indicates why AC is losing to Westjet and porter:
When there is a stopover before flying on to the final destination – eg – i flew to ottawa last week and the flight stopped in wpg before carrying on to ottawa, the pilot and co-pilot come back to help tidy up the seatbelts and pick up and garbage. On an AC flight they stay in the cockpit of just stand around watching the stews do the job – they have to due to union rules.
Right to Work legislation will deregulate the labour market and cause a boom in productivity which means more jobs, revenues, and taxes paid and maybe, just maybe, it will save AC.
I haven’t flown AC for about 15 years..for the same reasons as above. Since I usually fly to the US or overseas – I take American Airlines or United or Amsterdam or..
The right-to-work legislation is vital. Oh, and a note to leftists: the UN Charter of Human Rights has in it..’the right to work’. Nothing about any right-to-strike’.
But the power of public service unions or unions that operate within a monopoly service has to be ended. The unions have changed from a focus on competitive worker well-being to setting up an elite class of workers..whose salaries and benefits far outstrip those in the private sector.
This means that the business no longer uses its income for services..but to pay those elite workers. I’d like to see the CUPE and CUPW ended as well. CAW is the cause of the loss of jobs, outsourcing and …
AC customer service is among the worst there is in this country. That they strike for defined-benefit pensions even as the shortfall hits $2 billion shows their self-absorption has no limits in the known universe.
For the ill informed,AC has not been a Crown Corporation for over twenty years.Having flown all over the world on pretty well every carrier possible it’s my opinion that for the most part it’s the cabin crew that make or break the flight.You can be booked on a reputable flight,on time,modern aircraft,ticket cost affordable,but if the crew don’t like their job then you can still be left with a bad taste in your mouth.The opposite is true as well.I flew Alaska once and at the time they had a horrible maintenance issue going on which was to say the least a little scary.The cabin crew was so friendly and attentive that any other distractions quickly disappeared.I am surprised at how rude some of front line staff can be for any carrier,of course when wondering how some individuals remain employed the answer always comes back to the unions.
John B…
Agreed… WJ is not impressive. It’s an OK regional, occasional traveller and tourist airline, but not considered a major in any way. No interlining, no rewards, and the WJ shtick gets old real soon.
I’ve done over 100K (NA, EU, SA, Asia) with AC/StarAlliance already this year, and if there is one major airline over the past 5-7 years that has shown consistant improvement in service, it is AC. Porter is great, where they go… nowhere in Western Canada. And yes, I do take WJ occasionally for destination and scheduling.
To all those who say that they haven’t flown AC in 15 years and then comment with authority on their service, your comments are worth about that much. Fly every week and I will listen to you.
Don’t get me started on United/Continental or NorthWorst/Delta…service is a foreign concept to them and their equipment…
I was flying back from Germany on Friday on AC and had a chance to have a long conversation with some senior attendants, whom I’ve come to know from frequent flying over the years. They, and most of their counterparts are just disgusted with the CAW and the ususal union nonsense. They would welcome right to work legislation, and the ability to receive pay and promotion based on performance, and are tired of protecting those who don’t perform. But as in most unions, there is a small minority that control the agenda and make life miserable for the rest. Don’t judge AC employees as a whole (as any company), because there are many great ones who would love to get out from under the CAW.
Enacting all-encompassing right to work legislation in this country, would be a breath of fresh air to many companies (AC included) and workers (AC included). It can’t happen soon enough, in my opinion. One could imagine the left screaming and howling (as predicted), but the noise will lessen and eventually die out as the fresh winds of service and profitability flow accross our country.
We fly WestJet whenever possible. WestJet’s expanded Hawaii service was a pleasure for us. Recently we flew twice to Europe, once with Austrian Air and once with Air Canada. There was no comparison, Austrian Air was far superior with respect to food and attendant service and demeanor.
beever – your comments are very valid, but to declare that unless one has travelled AC in the past few years, their views on AC are irrelevant ignores why people left AC in the first place. And, there’s no ‘on the street gossip’ evidence of improvement.
As for the many who are disaffected with the unions, that’s very valid. But – why don’t they try to organize themselves against the union? I know it is extremely risky; the union can effectively control Management. But, sometimes one must gather a group – and fight the powers.
It seems ironic they would even have the face to do this while treating customers like concentration camp inmates. I mean who has ANY pity on these perverts anymore. Flying is slowly dying out. Most can’t afford it anymore anyway. Our politicians are always in need for tax hikes, for more Personel Entitlements.
Who needs BDMS air carriers & the officials who abuse passengers?
ET,
Respectfully, I don’t fly AA, for many reasons, and will not comment on their service until I have given it a fair chance. Word on the street is just that…no more. I fly all over the world, on very small and very large carriers alike, and any comments I make are based on personal experience. Not that AC is perfect, far from it, but… in my personal experience, the quality of its service has improved greatly in the last few years.
The airline industry has undergone huge changes in the last decade, from increased competition from ultra low cost carriers,insurance, fuel, security, insane landing fees in Canada etc. As H.Ryan states above, the face of any business is it’s front line people and after 61 flights with them already this year, AC staff are doing an OK job.
But, back on topic, I think you know as well as anyone that trying to organize against your union, when it is that entrenched, is a foolhardy move, especially when you have bills to pay. Yes, in principle it is possible and even noble; in practise, it is a career ending move.
My preference is a political solution that will free all union employees (including my own son and daughter) from the tyrany that they are forced to be a part of, against their beliefs, unless they so choose to join. That is true freedom, and would bring much needed balance to the labour issue for both worker and management. It would also put a lot of union organizers (like the ones pushing this strike) onto the street, looking for gainful employment, where their job skills would now have to compete in the real world… (do you want fries with that?).
Much as it pains me to say it, I agree with Beever re: there frequently being worse choices than AC. From my experience American and United are actually worse, in terms of quality of staff, amenities, and seating comfort, and WJ not only doesn’t fly to many of the places I travel, it’s often more expensive. Compared to, say, JAL or Thai or Singapore, AC has much to learn, but in the big picture it’s not so bad.
Well said Dudley. AC isn’t Thai or Singapore. But it isn’t RyanAir, EasyJet or AirBerlin either!
What most people don’t realize is that the frequent business traveler that has to get from A to B on a certain day is what keeps the planes in the air… not the deep discount fares. WJ in Canada has been a success in their limited market space with a non-union model. Given the freedom to do so, other airlines including AC, could do the same in their market space. But unfortunately, some of these union contracts, given today’s economic realities, simply cannot be maintained, and many, if not most current union members know that. Their leadership though, has not faced and accepted this reality. Last time I checked, profit still pays the bills.
Beever is dead on, and I think this is a direct result of WestJet’s arrival and their service standard forcing AC to raise theirs. I think Westjet is a great airline, but really dislike the 737 (or all Boeing’s for that matter) as they don’t have any shoulder room. I recently flew on a 757 (with another airline), and am currently in the UK having flown on a 777W with AC (and as an aside, it’s gonna be a joy getting back to Canada on Saturday) and the shoulder room in both those planes sucked as well. I’ve learned which plane provide the most comfortable seats and fly distances exclusively with AC. However, if AC pisses me off with this strike action, they will lose my business, and I will once again use WestJet domestically, and look at all the options available for my international travel.
Last time I flew AC was Dec 26, 2001. AC had a monopoly in the Yukon (CP was belly up) and I went to see my Dad who was dying. $1500.00 one way to Kamloops – no compassionate discount without a Death Certificate- the plane was supposed to leave at three but because of ice (in the Yukon, in Dec, in Canada think of that: ice…in the Yukon!) on the wings, did not leave until 7. The airport closed at 4 so nobody on that flight had dinner and the kids were offered chocolate milk and potato chips to tide them over to the arrival in Vancouver at 9. The Cabin crew were hostile to the passengers (far from rude and impolite; hostile and furious to have to fly with us on boxing day). I missed my connection to Kamloops so I took a bus and arrived at 12:30 Dec. 27. I have not stepped anywhere near to Air Canada since. Fortunately the Yukon now has Air North and it is on par with West Jet, IMO. An airline that values customers and makes every attempt to make flying a pleasure. The food is good, the coffee is good and the attendants friendly and helpful. Example: I forgot our coats in a Vancouver hotel room when I traveled with a friend who is blind and in her late 80’s. I asked Air North if she could sit in the VIP lounge while I went back to the hotel for our coats – Air North offered to get their shuttle to stop and pick up our coats: no charge, and, so my friend would be close to a washroom on the plane the staff in Vancouver bumped us up to business: no charge.
I am not making this up! I have had the same good service at West Jet. I think all the AC staff should be liberated from the jobs that they appear to hate – fire them all and get in some fresh faces. Same goes for the Post Office as the AC malcontents.
As an AC employee for 13 years, I can honestly say that the pension issue is a big deal, especially when through the years the company took contribution holidays when the markets were good. All employees kept on paying regardless. Considering that there is some 10 billion dollars in the fund, guess who wants it. But when it comes time to make a contribution, esp at negots, the poor house blues are sung.
Buying Canadian Airlines was probably the worst thing the company ever did. No one in the executive team asked “Hey! Wait a minute! Why are we paying 67 million to get 5 billion more in debt?” Chretien might know, the Libs were in power then.
Concessions, yeah we gave them up, no pay raises, lost a weeks’ holidays, had to chose between St. Jean Baptiste or Remembrance Day for a stat holiday (why the union bought off on it I’ll never know). My work being outsourced to the same place that does Southwest Airlines…and also being shoved off to a new company that can fold at any time.
Work over time to fill up a time bank, before getting paid OT, providing they don’t send me home for a week in the middle of winter to keep me below that threshold.
There are good people that work in the rank and file, but the company does need an executive and upper management enema.
I have a simple rule, if a union is involved in any way I take my business somewhere else.