Czech Travel Service pilots working in Canada
 

This is a message to the Czech pilots employed by Prague based Travel Service and working on contract to Sunwing Airlines as Boeing 737NG pilots.

There are two groups of Czech Travel Service pilots in Canada. One group is in Canada flying Czech registered aircraft under a wet-lease agreement. This message is not adressed to that group.

The second group of pilots were admitted to Canada under the Foreign Temporary Workers Program to fly Canadian registered aircraft. This group had to obtain a work permit and had to pass a Canadian simulator ride. This message is addressed to you.

There are consistent rumors in Canada about a number of the Czech pilots being underpaid. Canadian regulations require that any Temporary Foreign Worker hired to work in Canada be paid wages comparable to those of their Canadian counterparts performing the same kind of work.
We are talking here of base bay. The amount earned in overtime or whatever you earn in per diem does not count.

A junior Canadian first officer earns about $5500 per month at Sunwing. The salaries of Czech pilots in Canada vary according to their date of hire and position, but there are persistent rumors that some junior F/O earn just 1200 Euros per month. This is just one third of what their Canadian counterparts earn.

Furthermore, it is illegal for your employer (Travel Service) to negotiate a salary for you with Sunwing airlines and pay you less than what was negotiated. In other words, Travel Service is not allowed to take a cut or a commission from you salary. The salary that was negotiated for you is your to keep.

If any Travel Service pilot feels they were underpaid, they should file a complaint.

In Canada, Labour Complaints must be filed with Provincial Labour Authorities.

Here is the address for all Toronto based pilots:

Ontario
Ministry of Labour
Employment Standards Branch
Telephone: (416) 326-7160 (Greater Toronto Area)
Toll free: 1 800 531-5551
TTY: 1-866-567-8893
Website: Employment Standards | Ontario Ministry of Labour

It says on the HRSDC website that if any temporary foreign workers have any complaints about their wages or work conditions, they should file a complaint with the Ministry of Labour of the Province they are working in. This would mean that the Czech pilots working in Toronto should file their complaints with the Ontario Ministry of Labour as indicated above.
However, I contacted the Ontario Ministry of Labour, and they indicated to me that because Airlines are Federally legislated companies, that any complaints that these particular Temporary Foreign Workers may have should be directed to the Federal Labour Ministry, not the provincial ones.

conditions
 

Hello, although terms and conditions of junior FOs decreased in Europe - including Travel Service - due to cadet programs, all Travel Service pilots in Canada are payed properly with comparable salary to Sunwing pilots. I think it's more about reciprocal airplanes/crew exchange out of season between Europe and Canada than providing underpaid pilots to Canadian labour market....

This is one of the most pathetically false statements I have ever read in years!
A Travel Service Captain makes less than a Sunwing F/O.
And forget any Travel Service pilot filing any complaint, they would have to show balls to do that.....

If the pilots are underpayed, which would not surprise me, I highly doubt you will see any complaints. The boss/owner of Travel Service is know to be not so easy to dance with.

If you find my statement to be false you should be sure you don't mix two cases. Working for Travel Service and being leased to work for Sunwing. There is a different salary rate for a season in Sunwing and in my opinion it might be less but it is comparable. Definitely not a third or a half of the Sunwing pilots salary. I agree there is a little chance of TVS pilots to negotiate with the boss but that is another story than complaining to canadian labour authorities.

Sunwing does not want to pay for ppc's and is using loop holes in the labour laws. No one has the balls to standup to the government, these Transport/HRDC civil servants won't do a thing because their scared of their bosses and lack the knowledge in aviation.
Is anyone really convinced that there are no qualified pilots in Canada. Westjet since 2007 have hired over 500 pilots and I'm willing to bet none of them were endorsed and even if they were they still did the full course. Just asked the Sunwing guy who was on course and endorsed then fired the first 2 weeks of ground school 1-2 years ago.

There's a Canadian guy asking a lot of questions. He has no beef with the reciprocal pilots but the government and scum wings tactics. I heard half the guys failed their rides. So to get around it they wet lease the the plane & crew.

UB

What would you say to the exodus of Sunwing Pilots working in Europe this year?? They are taking Czech jobs....and British jobs....taking all the good routes and layovers. Tit for tat if you ask me..

My only gripe was the Greman pilots in sunwing this year.....Germany will not allow Sunwing pilots to work there in the summer.

As for the Sunwing guy who went to westjet and was fired after two weeks........a little politics I bet.....Sunwing were pleased to get him back.

Let's be honest.....The sunwing management team rocks, they are making a ****load of cash, expanding every year and are hiring like mad. Not just pilots, but in every dept.

It seems to be inferred, that the Travel service pilots are lees able that Canadian Pilots......dream on!!!!!!!!!

Your correct win94 taking when you mention taking jobs from EU pilots. I don't disagree with the pilot exchange program. It's not a level playing field. A ratio of 80 Canadian pilots to 180 makes for 100 less Canadian jobs. Taking good routes/layovers they rarely have overnights when deployed overseas. Chek for exact number from the avcanada posts.

As for the fired pilot of course scum wing is happy. They hired back a very humbled pilot (why did he even leave if it was so good?) at first year pay and they don't need to train him. Lot of politics, I agree.

SW is making lots of cash because their able to exploit loop holes. If any other Canadian company could do it they would also. The foreign pilots are not even on the SW payroll & they come endorsed. Of course your going to make lots of cash and expand, their saving millions. Good on them!

I never made mention of the company and pilots who struggled and could not get through any training or line checks. I will say Canadian pilots are better.

I'm very certain the CAW and union president and the members are working very hard to level the playing field. Scum wing management was very stubborn in the last round of negotiations. Big company tactics, no different than any body else. Just exploiting the loop holes. Good on them and let's see if the government does anything about it.

Your vitriol and name calling makes it difficult to take anything else you say seriously. Try taking a chill pill, dealing with facts and only facts and then maybe people won't tune you out.

Win94, sorry to be of different opinion here. TUIFly asked for 16 F/O´s, but SWG wouldn´t let them go due to their own expension. TUIFly asked for the same amount last year, but SWG couldn´t let them go either. So please stay to the facts. And by the way TUI is one company, so it doesn´t really mean anything who is working where. And by the way, who saved SWG when the credit card company took 70mil down the drain?

Replo I have been led to believe that the Germans won't allow sunwing pilots to work in Germany, if that is factually incorrect, you have my apology.

You are right that it is one company, and I don't know the exact details of the credit card fiasco so can't really comment on it.

I'd probably add /quit to your statement about that fired Sunwing pilot at WestJet. I know him personally. From day 1 in GS he quickly realized he couldn't drink the company "happy juice " the rest of his career.

In any event it worked out even better for him. He's left seat now.......probably would have taken 10+ years at WestJet.