October 29, 1998
By Sylvie Lachance-Harrison, Component President
On behalf of the Bargaining Committee
CUPE opened bargaining with Air Canada on October 14th in Montreal. The Union met with the company for the second time on October 26 and 27 in Montreal. We took these two days to walk through our proposals with the company.
We explained to the company the origin and importance of our proposals. The company had many questions about our package, all of which were addressed.
Our next meeting with the company will be November 2nd to the 5th in Toronto. At that meeting the company will outline their opening positions on different issues for this round of bargaining.
We will also be discussing a company proposal to approach bargaining from a thematic perspective. The issues could be grouped into categories such as “wages and benefits”, “working conditions”, “administrative issues”, etc.
There is much work before us. We are encouraged that the company has offered to meet in the new year and that dates have been agreed upon - January 11-14 and January 18-21.
Stay informed and keep an eye out for negotiation updates. Check out our website at www.cupe.ca and follow the Air Canada negotiation link. We remind you also of our HOTLINE 1-800-735-2676. Should you have any questions, please contact your local representative.