ALPA Canada raises concerns about Senate report recommendations  

ALPA Canada is raising concerns about recommendations made in a newly released report by the Senate Standing Committee on Transport and Communications.

In a statement, Captain Tim Perry, president of the Air Line Pilots Association, Int’l (ALPA) Canada, in its Keep Canada Moving – Labour, Management and Supply Chain in the Rail and Maritime Sectors , “the Committee made several recommendations to the government, including a call to remove the ability to strike and impose contracts on rail and port workers.”

Captain Perry said, in his statement, that: “The collective bargaining process and the constitutionally protected right to strike are fundamental tools workers rely on to negotiate contracts, improve working conditions, and bring stability to our workforces.”

And he continued: “In our view, the recommendations set out in the Senate report do not reflect the economic or cultural realities of Canada’s labour market. In short, the recommendations undermine the collective bargaining process and represent a dangerous step backward for Canadian workers.”

Perry notes that: “While this report focuses on rail and port workers, adopting its recommendations sets a troubling precedent for all workers. If these rights can be stripped from one transport sector, then all sectors of transportation are at risk. If we don’t act, who’s to say those of us who work in the aviation sector won’t be next?”

And he makes it clear that: “That is why ALPA Canada supports the Canadian Labour Congress’ letter-writing campaign to tell Canada’s senators just how out of touch their recommendations are. We have encouraged our own members to stand up for workers’ rights across Canada and, ultimately, the interests of our careers and profession.”

Go to www.ALPA.org for more.