Release #: GGN 17.01
January 31, 2017

Air Georgian Pilots Vote to Join ALPA

WASHINGTON, D.C.—The Canada Industrial Relations Board (CIRB) yesterday announced that the pilots employed by Air Georgian Limited, an Air Canada Express carrier, voted overwhelmingly for the Air Line Pilots Association, Int’l (ALPA) as their new collective bargaining representative. A formal certification of ALPA as the pilots’ representative should be issued soon.

“We welcome our more than 230 colleagues at Air Georgian and look forward to the contributions they will bring to our union,” said ALPA president, Capt. Tim Canoll. “Air Georgian pilots are committed to advancing their careers and, by gaining access to ALPA’s professional resources, are now poised to achieve their goals. Through collaborative efforts, ALPA pilots across North America help to advance our profession and ensure that we maintain the safest air transport systems in the world.”

With over 85 percent of eligible pilots participating in the election, 99 percent voted in favor of joining the world’s largest pilot union, sending a unified message that Air Georgian pilots recognize the importance of ALPA representation in Canada.

Captain Robert McCallum, an Air Georgian pilot and a member of the Air Georgian Organizing Committee, applauded the result: “The pilots at Air Georgian play a crucial role in the success of our company, and we look forward to advancing that success with ALPA as we work with management to achieve our goals.”

The voting for the Air Georgian representation election opened on November 25, 2016, and closed on November 29, 2016. The CIRB did not release the official voting results until yesterday, after the Board determined that Air Georgian pilots are entitled to their own representative. Before that determination, an in-house union (OREA) had represented all bargaining unit employees, including pilots.

The focus for Air Georgian pilots now shifts to establishing a local structure, which will be known as the Air Georgian Master Executive Council, and designating local pilot representatives.

Founded in 1931, ALPA is the world’s largest pilot union, representing more than 54,000 pilots at 31 airlines in the United States and Canada, including the flightcrew members who fly for Air Transat, Bearskin, Calm Air, Canadian North, First Air, Jazz Aviation, Kelowna Flightcraft, and Wasaya. Visit the ALPA website at www.alpa.org or follow us on Twitter @WeAreALPA.

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CONTACT: ALPA Media, 703-481-4440 or Media@alpa.org