Rick Mercer gives Air Canada kudos on new jobs.

[ivtec]

$10.80 per hour at max 32 hours per week, $345.60 per week, $691.20 each pay period, $1382.40 per month and $16,588.80 per year all before taxes. Living in YUL, YYZ, YVR awesome! where do I sign up?

[Colonel Sanders]

Too bad it's illegal for you to start your
own airline, because that's where the
easy big money is, right?

[GyvAir]

Illegal, or just legally onerous?

[Colonel Sanders]

[CanadianEh]

Un-skilled labour isn't supposed to be a lifetime career.

Who says?

If there's one thing that I've learned, specifically from aviation, is that there are lots of jobs that MUST be done in order to an airline to run. Not all of these jobs can be glamourous and "high skilled", but any break in the chain will have the same end result: the passengers don't get from A to B and you're not making money.

The bottom line should be respect. I wouldn't want to be classified as a "cost" or an "unskilled" vs. "skilled" worker. At the end of the day, all of these people are human beings trying to get by in life and deserve respect regardless of their job, because without them we don't get to do our jobs.

[flyincanuck]

I'm not disputing that these jobs are not integral to operation. I worked the ramp for 7 years through college and my first flying jobs.

Remuneration should be in-line with responsibility.

Someone off the street with no formal training (unskilled) should not be making more than a pilot or mechanic (skilled).

Stakes are totally different; and so should be the pay.

I agree that respect, and a non-antagonistic approach towards the employees makes a better workplace.

But as for the bottom line, I stick to my point.

[flyincanuck]

...on the other hand, you could always go find work in Cuba. They're very egalitarian there.

[Beefitarian]

Years ago people said the same about Safeway cashiers making $18 per hour. Groceries are way more expensive, I guess farming must be the easy money now.

[human garbage]

...Air Canada and start @ $10.80/hr. That's less than Swissport, Westjet TAC, Porter and Servisair...

No way Jose! A quick Google shows that statement to be false.

Servisair's minimum in the last collective agreement was between $8.79 -$9.32 (http://www.lrb.bc.ca/cas/WUV33.pdf). Swissport was $10.00 -$10.35 (http://iam140.ca/userfiles/file/Collect ... nglish.pdf). It makes me laugh to think that they have to pay union dues out of that! Fricken CAW and the IAM should be ashamed of themselves. Negotiate peanuts and then charge for it. Useless to even be a member when you can make more at McDonalds. When I was in the IAW at least they got me a living wage before holding out their hand...

ETTW is right on the money that this is all our fault. Buy crap made overseas because its cheap and soon nothing will be made here. Reap what ye sow. I buy Canadian, American and European exclusively or try and do without. I've been in a Walmart twice but never bought anything from them, and I never will. It may be pissing into the wind, but I'm trying just the same. Sometimes its about fighting the battle regardless of if the war can be won.

Excuse me if I missed anything by not seeing the video that was linked. I can't watch Rick Mercer. He is a totally unfunny pinko egotist IMHO...

[Taiser]

Hate to say it but we, the consumers have to be held partly culpable for the middle class erosion. Nobody wants to pay reasonably for products or services. Nobody wants to pay 49$ for a toaster, they want it for free. If they can't get it free, then the rollback prices at Walmart will do. 12.87$ for a toaster? Same goes to a certain extent for air travel. Nobody wants to pay 995$ to get to YVR. Rollback price to YVR? 289$ it is.

Let's face it, the executive and managements at our airlines aren't taking the pay cuts we as an industry are seeing. Why is that? They are probably making the same sort of money they were 10 yrs ago BUT due to the marketplace pressure for a cheap ticket price they have to find the savings elsewhere. Employees paying the price for the marketplace vs executive remuneration.

I know this will sound a little idealistic but if everyone went down the aisles at Walmart and paid a little more for made in Canada or at least north America products maybe we'd improve things a bit.

I took the time one day to look through all the golf balls on the shelf to find some made in Canada. They're there, you just have to take the time and pay a little more

ETTW

Don't really agree with that, sure consumers want cheaper things..but with Grandpa Stevo and Unky Dalton taking about 42% of my wages right off the top, then add property taxes, HST, gas taxes, taxes on gas taxes, disposal (environmental BS fees on stuff) taxes, 300$ hydro bills to pay for "green energy" taxes, Ornge scandals, shutting down half built power plants and bringing Omar back just to name a few there is sweet F.A. left to pay for a forty dollar toaster!!! I'm not sure what the total exact total is, but I'm willing to bet that after it's all said and done I'm paying well over 60% of every dollar I make to government coffers! And for what...so the government can lose my mail? I'm just a lowly government peon! Can you imagine what businesses are paying?

I just consider myself lucky I have a good stable job with benefits. Those are rarer than Unicorns now-a-days! I got no issue with paying my fair share of taxes but when the governments of the day pisses (or worse loses and doesn't know where it went) my hard earned money away on BS then I blame them, not the companies trying to cut costs! All this money coming in and Dolton still has a 16 BILLION dollar deficit? WTF???

[whiteguy]

The solution is, these are no longer career jobs and the corporations are happy with a high turn over. I completely agree that we are seeing the erosion of the middle class, but, what constitutes "middle class?"

Where is the line that an unskilled labor job (rampie) should entitle you for membership in the "Middle Class."

The days of earning 80K/year chucking bags are over !

torx: AC does a little bit of "point-point" flying and we top the charts for losing luggage.

The days of making 80k/year never existed!!!! Another bs statement. I worked there for 10 years at top lead pay and never made anywhere near $80k even with OT!

My best year there was in 2000 after the takeover of CP. The first 2 quarters of the year I maxed out my OT hours, 104 per quarter, and even then I was in the low 50s for the year. After that my wage continually went down!

[N2]

Hey dad I want a career in avia........SLAP!

[Taiser]

My best year there was in 2000 after the takeover of CP. The first 2 quarters of the year I maxed out my OT hours, 104 per quarter, and even then I was in the low 50s for the year. After that my wage continually went down!

Jesus!! Even though I had regrets that statement (and many others like it) make me glad I got out of Commercial Aviation when I did!

[Beefitarian]

I think they are still talking about working on the ramp Taiser but I was surprised also when I read it.

[Mig29]

Hey dad I want a career in avia........SLAP!

Haahahahhaahah