Dear Friends,
Last week members of CUPE, Air Canada flight attendants said enough is enough when an overwhelming 99.7% took a strike vote sending a clear message to Air Canada’s leadership. They deserve respect, fair compensation and safe working conditions. Unifor stands in Solidarity with CUPE and it’s members.
If I may ask you all a favour, please take a moment to write to your MP’s and ask them not to interfere with Air Canada’s bargaining process. It is only through this process, with both AC and CUPE at the table, will a fair contract that has benefits for both sides happen. The flight attendants have been with their current contract for 10 years and it has been detrimental as there has been no consideration at all for inflation.
During COVID, they were not deemed an essential service and they had to wait with everyone else to get vaccinated. However now, many news media agencies, make it sound like they are. If they are, then officially deem them an essential service and pay them the salary for being an essential service. They are not coffee baristas, they are safety professionals that have to maintain that qualification every year.
Below is a sample letter of what you can email to your MP. Please share with all members and friends.
Thank you for your time!
In Solidarity,
Frank Wright
Manitoba/Saskatchewan Area Director
Directeur Local du Manitoba et de la Saskatchewan
2nd Floor, 1376 Grant Ave.
Winnipeg MB R3M 3Y4
Tel: (204) 487-5593
Cell: (204) 451-2424
Fax: (204) 487-2201
frank.wright@unifor.org
Dear MP Name
I am writing as a constituent to urge you and our government to stay out of Air Canada’s labour negotiations. As a voter, I want to believe that our government truly represents the working people who build and sustain our community. I am deeply concerned that government intervention in bargaining could tip the scales and undermine the principle of good-faith negotiations between employers and workers.
A fair contract can only be reached when both sides have the space to bargain sincerely, openly, and without external pressures that distort the outcome. Employers and workers each have legitimate interests, and a genuine, enforceable agreement should emerge from mutual concessions, trust, and a shared commitment to the common good—not from government interference that may skew negotiations.
I respectfully ask you to:
Advocate non-interference in ongoing labour negotiations.
Support policies that protect the right of workers and employers to bargain in good faith.
Promote a neutral framework that encourages fair, transparent, and collaborative bargaining processes.
Resist actions or rhetoric that could be perceived as tipping the scales in favour of either side.
Our community’s strength comes from fair wages, safe working conditions, and dignified livelihoods for those who work hard every day. Please ensure that any role our government plays in labour matters respects the autonomy of workers and employers to reach a voluntary and fair agreement without undue influence.
Thank you for your attention to this important issue. I look forward to your response and to seeing a commitment to principled, non-interventionist labour policy that upholds the rights and interests of working people.
Sincerely,
NAME
Unifor Local 7 