MONTREAL, June 14, 2015 /CNW Telbec/ - Air Canada and Unifor, the union representing the airline's approximately 4,000 Customer Service and Sales Agents, today announced that they have reached a tentative agreement on a new contract for five years.
"Along with agreements concluded with other employee groups over the past eight months, this tentative agreement with Unifor, subject to ratification, provides Air Canada with added stability and flexibility to support profitable growth. Importantly, it is a "win-win" agreement which acknowledges the contribution of our customer service and sales agents to Air Canada's success," said Calin Rovinescu, President and Chief Executive Officer of Air Canada.
"We're very pleased to have achieved important gains for our Air Canada members," said Unifor National President Jerry Dias. "We listened closely to what our members wanted in this contract and delivered results."
The agreement is subject to ratification by the union membership. Details of the agreement will not be released pending ratification and approval by the Air Canada Board of Directors.
The union will recommend ratification to its members and the Company will seek the Air Canada Board of Director's approval for the agreement.
This tentative agreement with Unifor follows on the conclusion in October 2014 of a new agreement with Air Canada's pilots on collective agreement terms for ten years. It is the fourth tentative collective agreement reached by Air Canada and its unions, including those with the International Brotherhood of Teamsters (IBT) representing its U.S. unionized workforce and UNITE representing its U.K unionized workforce.
About Air Canada
Air Canada is Canada's largest domestic and international airline serving more than 190 destinations on five continents. Canada's flag carrier is among the 20 largest airlines in the world and in 2014 served more than 38 million customers. Air Canada provides scheduled passenger service directly to 64 Canadian cities, 52 destinations in the United States and 78 cities in Europe, the Middle East, 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 1,321 airports in 193 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 that ranked Air Canada in a worldwide survey of more than 18 million airline passengers as Best Airline in North America in 2014 for the fifth consecutive year. For more information, please visit: www.aircanada.com.
About Unifor
Unifor is Canada's largest union in the private sector, representing more than 305,000 workers. It was formed Labour Day weekend 2013 when the Canadian Auto Workers and the Communications, Energy and Paperworkers union merged.
Caution Regarding Forward-Looking Information
Air Canada's public communications may include forward-looking statements within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Forward-looking statements, by their nature, are based on assumptions and are subject to important risks and uncertainties. Forward-looking statements cannot be relied upon due to, amongst other things, changing external events and general uncertainties of the business. Actual results may differ materially from results indicated in forward-looking statements due to a number of factors, including without limitation, industry, market, credit and economic conditions, the ability to reduce operating costs and secure financing, pension issues, energy prices, employee and labour relations, currency exchange and interest rates, competition, war, terrorist acts, epidemic diseases, environmental factors (including weather systems and other natural phenomena, and factors arising from man-made sources), insurance issues and costs, changes in demand due to the seasonal nature of the business, supply issues, changes in laws, regulatory developments or proceedings, pending and future litigation and actions by third parties as well as the factors identified throughout Air Canada's public disclosure file available at www.sedar.com. Any forward-looking statements contained in this news release represent Air Canada's expectations as of the date of this news release and are subject to change after such date. However, Air Canada disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required under applicable securities regulations.
SOURCE Air Canada - Corporate - Finance
