Air Canada pilots offered 30% pay raise to avert potential strike

Air Canada has proposed a pay increase of around 30 percent for more than 5,000 pilots over the next three years to avoid a potential strike, according to BNN Bloomberg.  

The offer includes an initial 20 percent raise, followed by annual increases, with pilots in their first four years of service receiving a larger raise, according to unnamed sources familiar with the negotiations. 

A captain with a decade of service flying a widebody aircraft, such as a Boeing 777, and currently earning $350,000 could see their salary increase by more than $100,000 during the contract’s term. Air Canada’s offer also includes enhancements to pension and health benefits. 

The negotiations between Air Canada and the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA) have been ongoing for over a year. The previous 10-year agreement, ratified in 2014, provided pilots with annual raises of about two percent. Pilots have not received a raise since last year.  

ALPA has previously stated that Air Canada pilots earn less than half of what their peers in the industry are paid. 

Charlene Hudy, the head of ALPA’s local unit, did not comment on the specifics of the offer but highlighted that low entry-level wages remain a critical issue. “One-quarter of our pilots have a second job, with almost 80 percent needing the job out of necessity,” she noted. 

A meeting is anticipated later this week. Hudy mentioned last week that discussions had “completely stalled.” In August, 98 percent of the pilots voted to give the union the authority to strike, with the possibility of a walkout by mid-September if no agreement is reached. 

In response, Air Canada introduced a rebooking policy for customers travelling between September 15 and 23. 

The union is pushing to reduce the pay gap with major US airlines, which have recently provided significant pay raises to their pilots.  

For example, last year, ALPA negotiated a four-year agreement with United Airlines that included compensation increases of up to 40 percent, with an immediate pay hike of between 13.8 percent and 18.7 percent. 

Air Canada spokesperson Peter Fitzpatrick expressed the company’s desire to maintain its pilots as the highest-paid in Canada. “We are open to any solution to reach a reasonable settlement, including arbitration,” Fitzpatrick said. 

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