Dozens of Canadian Air Transport Security Authority (CATSA) agents rallied outside the Vancouver airport on Monday to protest low wages and “very challenging” working conditions.
Waving signs that read, “Stop wage theft,” they said they aimed to garner public support and shed more light on staffing issues that have contributed to recent, hours-long lineups at YVR.
“They are having health and safety issues, poor treatment from management, higher work demand than ever before, and the wages are not competitive compared to everywhere else in the airline industry,” said Dave Flowers, IAMAW national president.
The IAMAW, or International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, represents more than 40,000 Canadian workers. The workers protesting Monday were doing so on their own time, and not interfering with airport operations or adding to existing delays, said Flowers.
The CATSA agents are employed by Allied Universal and contracted by the federal government.
Global News has reached out to Allied Universal for comment on this story and will update the article when it is received.
According to Flowers, the pay range for CATSA screening officers is between $17 and just under $22 per hour. Many agents, however, have not obtained the experience or seniority needed to top out the pay scale, meaning they earn less than what is considered a “living wage” in Vancouver, he said.
“There are very challenging working conditions we’re dealing with,” he told Global News. “It really comes down to retention and our members are put in a very difficult position.”
Vancouver screening agents are currently negotiating a new contract, Flowers added, but Monday’s actions are an unrelated campaigning initiative.
According to CATSA, there were close to 7,400 screening officers across the country before the COVID-19 pandemic. There are now 6,500, including new hires that are not yet been fully certified.
Last week, Transport Canada and Public Safety Canada announced some 400 new officers will be deployed between now and June to help combat airport delays, and a more flexible onboarding process has been implemented to get them on the ground more quickly. “Pre-certified” officers are also being used to perform non-screening functions, the departments added in a May 27 news release.
Flowers said it’s “fantastic” news, but it won’t address the root of the problem: poor agent retention due to difficult working conditions.
“They were one of the first industries to face major outbreaks of COVID-19. They weren’t allowed to leave their work posts, they were forced to come in, and in a lot of cases, didn’t have protective safety equipment to deal with it,” he said.
“Now when it’s time to recognize that hard work, they’re being treated like their work doesn’t matter.”
In an emailed statement on Tuesday, CATSA said it aims to hire 1,000 new screening officers this year, in addition to more than 1,200 recalled to duty last year.
The authority said it is close to having recruited all of its targeted number of new hires in several airports, including Vancouver International Airport and Toronto Pearson International Airport.
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