March 2, 2012
Calin Rovinescu
President and CEO
Air Canada
Dear Mr. Rovinescu
As our airline celebrates its 75th Anniversary we are here to celebrate this historic achievement that all of our efforts have made possible, but we are also here to advise that there are serious problems within our airline.
It goes without saying that the Labour Relations climate at Air Canada is breaking down. But what isn’t said is why we, our company’s workers, are so upset.
It smacks of hypocrisy of the highest order to be led by Executives that continually demand we make sacrifices for the “viability” of the Company and then watch those same Executives pocket millions in bonuses and receive raises in pay and pension benefits in excess of 70% in a year.
A day doesn’t go by without us hearing about how we are the problem and how management is trying to find ways to replace us with “low cost” workers from senior Executives who are never replicable and must be highly compensated in order to maintain their loyalty to the Company.
Over the past decade we have agreed to take wave after wave of concessions and have watched th is goodwill allow senior management to make hundreds of millions in payments of “special distributions” to their corporate backers or in golden parachutes to departing millionaire Executives.
It is time to lead by example. It’s time to end this culture of senior executives viewing us workers as a cost in which to be squeezed for more bonuses at the top.
This will require a major change in culture including management not using their friends in Ottawa to threaten our unions into concessionary agreements, ending the disastrous habit of unilaterally imposing policies on us and ending the out of control greed at the top.
We aren’t the enemy and, like you, we are proud of this great airline.
We are hoping that you will use this day to reflect on what’s been achieved and how we can achieve so much more by finding solutions together. End the games in Ottawa, at our bargaining tables and in the Boardrooms.
Let’s start building for another great 75 years!
Thank you for your time and attention to this important matter.
Yours truly;
The members of Local Lodge 2323.
