MONTREAL, March 9, 2020 /CNW Telbec/ - Air Canada has been named one of Canada's Best Diversity Employers for the fifth consecutive year. In selecting Air Canada, Mediacorp Canada Inc. cited the airline's continuing work to foster inclusiveness through numerous partnerships, its success outreaching directly to diverse communities when recruiting and other initiatives. 

"We firmly believe that having a diverse and inclusive workforce is not only a true strength for Air Canada, but one that helps us to attract and retain the best available global talent. We are extremely proud of the fact that our customers and stakeholders can see themselves and their diverse backgrounds reflected in our 37,000 employees around the world. Our people work in more than 80 languages, and women occupy prominent roles throughout our airline, from non-traditional roles to the C-suite," said Arielle Meloul-Wechsler, Executive Vice President, Chief Human Resources and Communications Officer at Air Canada.

"We actively advance diversity through several initiatives, including recruitment partnerships with Indigenous peoples, LGBTQ, people with disabilities and other communities, as well as championing the next generation of women in non-traditional aviation careers through the Captain Judy Cameron Scholarship. This honour is also welcome because it makes it clear that anyone with the right skills and aptitude can be sure Air Canada is inclusive and welcoming."

In naming Air Canada to the list of Best Diversity Employers, Mediacorp Canada Inc. cited the airline's inclusivity through partnerships including:

• Indspire's Indigenous scholarship and award program, providing financial support for Indigenous students completing their education in an aviation-related program such as pilot or aircraft mechanic;
• A program with Jazz Aviation to create a partnership with First Nations Technical Institute to help young Aboriginal students become pilots – the initiative includes guidance on résumés and job interview preparation, as well as site visits to flight simulators and flight operations;
• Ready, Willing and Able to match the unique qualifications of candidates with intellectual disabilities or Autism Spectrum Disorder to specific roles – the company also participates in Dolphin Digital Technologies' disability mentoring day.

Canada's Best Diversity Employers competition recognizes the nations' leaders in creating inclusive workplaces for employees from five diverse groups:  women, visible minorities, persons with disabilities, Indigenous peoples, and lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender/transsexual (LGBTQ) peoples.  Employers are selected by the editors at Mediacorp based on submissions to the annual Canada's Top 100 Employers project.

For more information on career opportunities with Air Canada please visit aircanada.com/careers.

In addition to being named one of Canada's Best Diversity Employers for 2020, Air Canada has received other recent recognitions for employee relations and engagement including being named:

• one of Canada's Top 100 Employers in Canada (2020) for the seventh consecutive year by Mediacorp Canada Inc;
• one of Montreal's Top Employers 2020 for the seventh consecutive year by Mediacorp Canada Inc;
• one of the 50 Most Engaged Workplaces in North America for Fourth Consecutive Year by Achievers;

Additional information on Air Canada's Human Resources is in the "Employees" section of the 2018 Corporate Sustainability Report.

About Air Canada

Air Canada is Canada's largest domestic and international airline serving nearly 220 airports on six continents. Canada's flag carrier is among the 20 largest airlines in the world and in 2019 served over 51 million customers. Air Canada provides scheduled passenger service directly to 62 airports in Canada, 53 in the United States and 101 in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia, Australia, the Caribbean, Mexico, Central America and South America. Air Canada is a founding member of Star Alliance, the world's most comprehensive air transportation network serving 1,250 airports in 195 countries. Air Canada is the only international network carrier in North America to receive a Four-Star ranking according to independent U.K. research firm Skytrax, which also named Air Canada the 2019 Best Airline in North America. For more information, please visit: aircanada.com/media, follow @AirCanada on Twitter and join Air Canada on Facebook.                                      

Internet: aircanada.com/media

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SOURCE Air Canada