Wet Lease Notice - Sunwing- May 2023

Dear Members

The past 18 hours have been a busy one for the Union.  A breakdown of the recent events are as follows:

·Late afternoon on May 11th, the Employer advised CUPE 4070 of Notice of a Wet Lease, from May 16-30, 2023 from Sunwing, for the limited purpose of responding to IROPs that may arise out of the potential ALPA labor action. 

·The Union reached out to ALPA immediately for a collaborative discussion on the matter as these impacts both groups.

·The Union initiated consultations with our internal Legal team to better understand our landscape and options available to us in how to respond to this matter.

· Early this morning on May 12th, the Employer advised they would be rescinding the Notice of Wet Lease.

It is extremely disappointing to know that the Employer considered using this tactic, which would only aide in creating an environment that would set Pilots against Pilots or Cabin Crew against Cabin Crew.  Sewing divisions within Labour groups is hardly acting in good faith and an insult to any unionized workforce within this organization, including the Sunwing pilots and Flight Attendants, and to a further extent the entire industry.  We are relieved that the company has rescinded this notice.

It was also encouraging to read the email, sent from Unifor Local 7378 Sunwing Pilots to their members advising them of their position on the matter as being “unacceptable”.  See communication here 

We are in communication with the CUPE Local 4055 (Sunwing CCMs) and we will send an update as soon as we have one.

Notice of Strike

As of 00:01 on May 13th the pilots can issue the Notice of Strike.

What this means and how it impacts you

This means pilots can go on strike by giving notice and their strike can commence 72h after the notice is given.

If a strike happens, it can impact you. The company has advised that it’s contingency plan will be enacted once the Notice of Strike has been issued.  No other details were provided as it will depend on the scenario and how it unfolds.  We will have daily morning calls after a notice is given to establish a plan.

The Employer can utilize layoffs of Cabin Personnel during a strike, but they must follow the timelines and parameters outlined in our Collective Agreement article 47 and specifically 47-3.02. 

We ask our members for their patience as we work through the many details required to ensure we are sharing the most accurate and up to date information with our members. We want to assure our membership that we are on top of this, this is a very fast and constantly evolving situation.  The potential impact it will have on our members is our top priority!