No Pilot Contract as Airline Posts Record Q3 Earnings

Joined by pilots from competing airlines, over two-hundred Air Canada pilots undertook an informational picket outside Montreal’s Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport (YUL) on 30 October 2023.

The picket’s date and time corresponded with the release of Air Canada’s third-quarter 2023 earning call, wherein the Canadian flag-carrier reported record adjusted earnings of $1.83-billion EBITDA (Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation, and Amortization). The figure marked an increase of $733-million over 2022’s third-quarter, with an adjusted EBITDA margin of 28.8-percent—the highest of any major North American airline for the time-period.

The Air Canada pilots graciously congratulated their employer, acknowledging the significance of the fortune the airline had built on their backs and stating they remain fully invested in the company’s success.

“Today’s earnings report clearly shows that Air Canada is back to pre-pandemic profits, thanks in large part to the contributions Air Canada pilots made throughout this past summer and beyond,” remarked first officer Charlene Hudy, Air Canada ALPA Master Executive Council (MEC) chair.

Hudy added: “Operationally, the airline is still falling short, with the recent canceled and delayed flights, and no one knows that better than our pilots and our passengers.”

Canada’s vast geography and challenging meteorology require a sustainable and robust aviation network. A number of the contractions occurring within the Air Canada network can be improved via the ratification of a contract addressing pilots’ long-standing quality-of-life concerns; so stated ALPA. The union called attention, also, to the growing wage gap between U.S. and Canadian pilots.

First Officer Hudy opined: “We want to have a stable aviation network in Canada, but to do so, you have to compensate pilots appropriately. Air Canada must invest in our pilot group so that we can retain and attract pilots at this global airline.”

In June 2023, the Air Canada MEC officially provided a notice to bargain to Air Canada management, with negotiations ongoing. Since then, the pilot negotiating committee worked diligently and protractedly with the airline’s management to secure the world-class contract. ALPA maintains Air Canada has a finite window of opportunity during which to attract future aviators, and help the airline provide its customers consistent and reliable service. The union warns, however, that the absence of a competitive contract is apt to compel extant Air Canada pilots to seek better opportunities with competing air-carriers.

FMI: www.alpa.org