Sunwing's pilots filed a bad faith complaint with the Canada Industrial Relations Board on Monday, 04JUL, their union representative says.
The pilots allege the airline bargained in bad faith during a recent round of negotiations because Sunwing already knew the company was being sold to WestJet.
"Despite management reassurances (to bargaining pilots) that the company was not a candidate for a sale or merger, Sunwing was sold to WestJet shortly after the collective agreement was signed – a huge slap in the face," said Scott Doherty, Unifor's Executive Assistant to the National President.
Sunwing's pilots "made several concessions with the understanding the pandemic had placed major financial pressures on the airline. It's not only the employer's duty to bargain in good faith – it's the law," said Barret Armann, President of Unifor Local 7378, the union that represents 452 Sunwing pilots.
"Had this sale been transparent during bargaining, we could have pushed to include job security language in case of acquisitions."
Unifor and Sunwing ratified a four-year deal based on those negotiations on 12FEB 2021.
On 02 MAR 2022, Sunwing and WestJet announced that WestJet would be buying Sunwing, pending regulatory approvals.
"It was of paramount importance to the union to receive assurances from the employer that it was not discussing a sale to WestJet, as any potential sale would have had important consequences on the union's positions with respect to bargaining," the filing reads.
Unifor points out in a media release about the new labour board complaint that Section 50 of the Canada Labour Code requires parties to a collective agreement to "bargain in good faith, including to answer honestly whether it will likely implement changes during the term of a proposed agreement that may have significant impact on the bargaining unit."
In addition to its 04JUL labour board complaint, the union also accuses the airline, as it ramps up operations again, of seeking "further savings via contract violations, reaching into the already struggling pilot's pockets for more."
The union notes that the pilots "made monetary concessions with the understanding the pandemic had placed major financial pressures on the airline."
"We know Canada's aviation industry is broken right now and companies are counting on employees to go the extra mile to resolve issues," said Barret Armann, President of Local 7378.
But he added, "If Sunwing is worried about staffing issues, recruitment, retention and want their employees to work hard, going that extra mile the easiest thing they could do is roll back the concessions and be honest about the future. Treat your pilots well and both parties can share in the long term success. We all want a future that's bright."
