Air Canada Layover Policy Announcement Sparks Debate

The city of Winnipeg, Manitoba has an admittedly high rate of violent crime, at least by Canadian standards, but many are still puzzled by a decision by Air Canada to move it's crews from downtown to hotels near the airport during layovers. The biggest question - what's changed lately to warrant this precaution?

In a memo to pilots and cabin crews, Captain Jeff Dennis, Air Canada's manager of flying operations said, in part:

"In response to several reports indicating questionable safety in the area surrounding the Radisson Hotel in downtown Winnipeg a security assessment was conducted, in conjunction with the Winnipeg Police Service, by Air Canada Corporate Security. Recent environmental issues have forced approximately 1,000 displaced people from rural Manitoba to numerous hotels in the downtown area. Instances of public intoxication, resulting in several downtown locations being susceptible to crimes of violence and opportunity, have been observed by local police.

"For now, we have arranged...to have crews layover at the Sandman Hotel and Suites. We will certainly revisit the downtown area once the present situation improves. Authorities anticipate displaced people to be an issue for another 12 months."

The Sandman is an airport hotel. Air Canada's union contract requires that crews be put up at downtown hotels, where choices in lodging, food and entertainment are more varied.

Michael Weinrath, chair of the justice department at the University of Winnipeg, sounds puzzled at the timing in comments to CBC News. "If you look at the statistics, yes, we do have a very high violent crime rate, but it actually hasn't changed very much and it's gone down in a few areas in recent years."

Winnipeg Mayor Sam Katz says he's disappointed at this latest PR challenge to his downtown core's resurgence, and wonders if there's an ulterior motive. He tells CBC, "For all I know, this could be about cost savings, but I certainly would like to know the truth because two key reasons given have already been proven false."

The Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs Grand Chief Derek Nepinak thinks he knows what that motive is, and calls it surprising and racist. About 10 percent of those thousand "displaced people" mentioned in the memo are First Nations people, or what are called American Indians in the US.

Ironically, Air Canada Park is in the same downtown neighborhood. Paul Strachan, president of the Air Canada Pilots Association, tells the Winnipeg Free Press, "We don't agree with Air Canada's assessment of the entire Winnipeg downtown being unsafe for crews. We have our headquarters downtown and people make it there and back home OK."

It's often informative to read local reaction to stories such as this, something that's possible with the advent of newspaper websites offering comment sections. A fair percentage of comments on this story to the Winnipeg Free Press reflect the opinion that downtown Winnipeg really is a scary place, and that the problem continues in part because the city administration is in denial.

FMI: Air Canada Memo ; CBC Report on Crime in Winnipeg