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Thank you to those of you at work, delayed or struggling to get to and from work for your patience and professionalism. These are trying times.
The two snowstorms are understandably difficult situations to work through, and we have sympathy for the struggles that management is dealing with. Unfortunately, too much of this feels like déjà vu. We are experiencing delays, cancellations, crew travel failures, and phones that aren’t being answered in a timely manner. Following the disastrous operational breakdown over Christmas 2022, Sunwing assured employees, the travelling public, and even a Senate Committee that staff would be hired, technology would be upgraded, IROPS plans would be improved, and the airline would never find itself in a similar situation. Those promises feel a little empty today.
It is unfortunate that the winter snowstorms have coincided with the decision to end Sunwing's contracts with our primary Canadian ground handling company, Swissport. This practice of contract flipping often forces ground handlers to restart at reduced wages at another company while servicing the same customer. This practice needs to end. Airlines know the impact that their ground handling contracting strategies have on those employees’ willingness to go above and beyond during IROPs. This weekend's chaos in YYZ is not unexpected.
Adherence to the duty rules is a shared responsibility and it was troubling to hear reports of management and operations not giving that responsibility the serious consideration it deserves. We have heard of dispatchers trimming the turn times down to unrealistic levels to make a flight work on paper. We have also recently heard that the Company attempted to reset FCMs’ crew rest in the middle of the night for a PM departure when the FCM was already sleeping for an AM departure. Nowhere in the duty regs is that procedure allowed.
Remember, we want to see the job get done. But it must be done safely and properly, within the rules. The regulations are written in black and white and typically place the burden of compliance onto the PIC. That is why it is on us, the final line of defence to ensure what we do is correct, safe and legal. You are doing that, and we thank you for your professionalism under pressure.
It is important to remember that as difficult as the past few days have been for flight crews, it has been equally difficult for our passengers. We've all been in the business long enough to know the impact these delays can have on people's lives so please volunteer, if possible, to help out to get things back on track. The operation appears to be at least a day behind schedule and getting caught up will require patience with schedule changes, unexpected delays and so on. We ask you to do what you can to help within the rules and Collective Agreement!
We have heard of large delays with hotels and transport. Advise the Company when things aren’t going as they should. A call, and then a follow up email is ideal. Be patient with the schedulers and crew travel agents, as they are also experiencing increased workload and reduced staffing.
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