It is understood that Porter Airlines’ cabin crew in Ontario will join Canada’s flight attendant union called CUPE.
Such employees would join the 18,500 flight attendants represented across the following 10 airlines:
- Air Canada
- WestJet
- Air Transat
- Sunwing
- CALM
- Flair
- Canadian North
- PAL Airlines
- PasCan
- Pivot
CUPE Welcomes Porter Airlines Cabin Crew Into The Union in Ontario…
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Commenting on Ontario-based carrier Porter Airlines’ cabin crew joining CUPE was the national president Mark Hancock:
“Porter cabin crew deserve better working conditions, better wages, and better scheduling in a mutually agreed contract – just like flight attendants at unionized airlines in Canada”.
“But without an enforceable contract and a strong union voice, the company makes the rules and can change them whenever they feel like it.”
Adding to Hancock’s comments was CUPE’s National Secretary-Treasurer Candace Rennick:
“CUPE knows what it takes to address issues that matter to Porter cabin crew, like wages, scheduling, crew rest, duty days, and more – because CUPE has the experience and expertise from negotiating industry-leading contracts”.
Could Strikes Be On The Way?
At this stage, it is too early to tell whether any strike action will happen.
But in the perspective of the airline’s cabin crew, they now have a lot of resources at disposal to negotiate better employment contracts.
In the release, CUPE haven’t indicated whether any negotiations or industrial action would begin, but this will be something to keep an eye on as we progress through the rest of this year and beyond.
CUPE have been very active in recent months, particularly on the Air Canada front, where they openly criticised the carrier over its recent profits reported in their financial statements.
Overall, this will definitely be something to look out for in the future.
UPDATE #1 @ 1923 UK time – 28/8/23 – Porter Airlines have indicated to AviationSource that CUPE are “recruiting only, as they have attempted in the past, but we have received no indication that a union is certified”.
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