Unifor is the most powerful union for aircraft mechanics.
Since our inception over a decade ago, Unifor has bargained thousands of contracts, many with historic gains, including with Air Canada, WestJet, Perimeter Aviation, Canadian Aviation Electronics, NAV Canada and the Greater Toronto Airport Authority.
Unifor just bargained a 20% wage increase over three years for Skilled Trades workers at Bombardier.
We also welcomed new members from Concorde Airport Services at Calgary airport, Menzies Aviation Ltd. at Halifax airport, and Porter Ottawa aviation workers.
By staying with Unifor, you’re staying with the strongest union in Canada’s airlines sector- one that has the resources to defend members at the bargaining table and on the picket line.
We want to talk to you — Reach out to our Local 2002 leadership to talk through your concerns today!
- DON ROSS, Local 2002, Jazz Maintenance Vice-President (778) 227-0093 Cell, [email protected]
- RYAN BOUNDY, Local 2002, Jazz Technical Services Bargaining Chairperson (519) 495-1149 Cell, [email protected]
- DOUG MOSHER, Local 2002, JTS Technical Services Bargaining Chairperson (902) 456-5925 Cell, [email protected]
- SCOTT McILMOYLE, Unifor National Representative, (416) 500-7837 Cell [email protected]
Download the Flyer: Unifor is a Strong Canadian Union, see how AMFA Compares
MYTH: AMFA can resolve our bargaining issue
FACT: AMFA takes up to seven years to secure a first contract.
It took almost seven years of negotiations before AMFA and Southwest Airlines announced a tentative agreement for the airline’s aircraft maintenance technicians in 2019. Then, even after the contract was finally signed, the employer and the union remained at odds in the courts and AMFA is facing a $20 million price tag for the lawsuit.
Your union is ready to gear up for negotiations, the quickest path to improvements is via early bargaining which Unifor has secured with Jazz.
MYTH: AMFA can provide Canadian aircraft mechanics with more clout from down south
FACT: AMFA is a floundering Colorado-based union with a shrinking, 4,460-person membership and no Canadian expertise.
AMFA has lost 10,000 members since 2007 and is financially unstable.
AMFA currently represents mostly airline carriers in the U.S. and has members at only two companies in Canada. Three new units, certified as long ago as 2022, are still waiting for their first contracts. A new unit in Canada simply will not be a priority. The union doesn’t even have a single staff person in the Canadian region.
Unifor has built a strong infrastructure to represent our members from coast-to-coast-to-coast. We have a robust staff team with specialists working in the skilled trades, legal, research, and much more, and locals across Canada share information with and learn from one another.
Unifor has the experience, expertise, and resources to best lead you to achieve the wage increases and gains that you deserve.
No other union can match our strength and influence, both at the bargaining table and when talking to all levels of government about the policies that affect your job.
Advantages to being with Unifor
As union members, you know the importance of being part of a strong union that stands up for all workers and fights for your right to a decent job for you, your family and your community for our collective strength.
Unifor is that union. Dedicated staff in our legal, pensions and benefits, health and safety, skilled trades departments and more are here for you every day to assist your elected representatives and your bargaining committee to get the best collective agreements in your sector. Unifor has the resources to administer the contract for the full term and give your elected representatives the training and support they need to take on the employer. AMFA does not have these resources.
Unifor is a Canadian, member-driven union, meaning your priorities are our priorities and you set the agenda for collective bargaining, but with the resources of a strong national union behind you.
A small, American union cannot deliver the support you need. They might try to punch above their weight, but they cannot deliver the experience, influence, and power that Unifor holds in the airlines sector. When the pandemic shut down our industry in 2020, Unifor went to bat for the local. At the beginning of the pandemic, we formed an adjustment committee to mitigate the impact of Covid and signed off on the Canadian Emergency Wage Subsidy for JTS and Jazz maintenance workers so that members could continue to stay on payroll and receive paychecks.
In March 2024, Unifor relied on its experience in the federally regulated transportation sector to protect the jobs of Canadian workers by safely stopping a CN train during a solidarity action by Unifor members in Winnipeg as part of an escalation caused by the company’s use of scab labour at CN Autoport in Halifax.
And when you need it most – Unifor supports families on the picket line. Your union’s $150 million strike fund has supported 97 strikes in the past year and is still strong. Meanwhile, AMFA’s strike fund is capped at $1 million. AMFA strikes are paid for by requiring locals with non-striking members to contribute more during strikes. Unifor’s strike fund, on the other hand, always has your back.
With Unifor, you the members set your unit’s priorities then tap into the strength of 320,000 members to get it done, including more than 16,000 in air transport and another 11,000 in aerospace.
Unifor lets your bargaining committee, and you the members, make the decisions during collective bargaining, Unifor National supports you at bargaining but will not overstep the direction of your elected committee, which is not the case with AMFA.
AMFA has limited national staff given the small size of the association. Their website indicates they have seven national officers, whereas Unifor has a large national staff base which include lawyers, economists, organizers to provide support to members and locals as required.
Unifor has the sway to be able to make a difference when we lobby in Ottawa whether that is lobbying to keep government out of our right to strike or for anti-scab legislation or the many other campaigns that take place every year, including the Air Transportation Workers’ Charter of Rights and Freedoms, which puts air transportation workers’ needs front and centre in our fight to reduce industry chaos by improving workers’ lives.
No other union could do that for you. That’s what being in a national union means.
Looking ahead to bargaining
Canada’s air transportation industry looks a lot different now than it did the last time your union and Jazz went to the table. In 2015, workers across the sector including pilots and flight attendants were taking decade-long deals to lock in certainty.
Jazz workers were under attack with the company threatening outsourcing and massive layoffs which resulted in Jazz workers also agreeing to a 10-year deal with concessions on future new hires. Unifor and your bargaining committees are fully committed to eliminating any disparities between post-DOR and pre-DOR members while also securing the wage increases that reflect the value and important work you do, which is long overdue.
Earlier this year, Jazz finally responded to the shortage of AMEs and offered some money to try and solve their retention issues. The message from the membership was loud and clear:
NOT NEARLY ENOUGH!
It’s time to bargain a better deal with Unifor, not jump on board AMFA’s sinking ship with no contract in sight.
Stay with Unifor
Many of you have shared that, although you may have signed a card with AMFA, you want to stay with Unifor and work together to improve things.
Your feedback has come through loud and clear: we hear you. This is your opportunity to renew your commitment to Unifor and take a stand for stronger, more effective representation for Jazz Line Maintenance and JTS workers.
Unifor is fully committed—locally and nationally—to making real changes based on your feedback.
At the bargaining table, we have an unprecedented opportunity to achieve significant gains and secure lasting improvements for you and your fellow members. As Canada’s largest private-sector union and the leading union in aviation and aerospace, Unifor has the strength and influence to make these changes a reality.
By signing this card, you’ll be choosing a renewed path forward with Unifor, reaffirming your support and empowering us to advocate for the meaningful changes you deserve. Let’s work together to build a stronger, more secure future for all Jazz Line Maintenance and JTS members.
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