Press Release: Low-wage women of colour lose out under YVR Airport’s living wage policy, according to new report 

Hundreds of airport concession workers not covered by airport living wage policy

Vancouver – YVR Airport’s living wage policy should be expanded to cover low-wage airport concession workers who serve travelers inside the terminals of Canada’s top airport, according to a new report.

Airport concession workers are among the lowest paid workers at YVR Airport.  Eighty percent (80%) of them are women of colour, many of them immigrants, who earn far below Metro Vancouver’s living wage of $25.68, according to a new report, Who Deserves a Living Wage at YVR Airport, by UNITE HERE Local 40.  The airport is a certified living wage employer, yet the average hourly wage for concession staff is $18.27, or $7.41 less than the airport living wage.

Roughly 2,500 out of the nearly 30,000 workers at the airport and on Sea Island are covered by YVR Airport’s living wage policy.  The existing policy covers over 900 Vancouver Airport Authority employees, the majority of whom are male and predominantly white. The policy also covers certain contractors, including those providing janitorial and security services inside the terminals and traffic management services.  The policy does not extend to airport concession staff, such as cashiers, attendants, servers, cooks, dishwashers, and others who work behind the food and retail counters a few floors down from Vancouver Airport Authority offices in the same building.

As YVR Airport’s revenues have largely recovered from the pandemic, the pay gap between Vancouver Airport Authority’s top executives and concession workers has widened.  Airport Authority CEO Tamara Vrooman earned a total compensation package of $2.2 million, up from $1.9 million the previous year, while the average full-time concession worker earned $36,000 in annual pay. The pay ratio between the Airport Authority’s CEO and an average full-time airport concession worker is 59:1, an income gap that grew last year.

Nearly 89% of concession workers surveyed reported that they are struggling to keep up with the rising cost of living. Over half, or 53%, reported having to cut back on family support for their immediate or extended family. Others reported cutting back on fresh food and medical care. Thirty percent (30%) of workers reported working more than one job.

Workers also cited having to cut back on transit costs. Vancouver Airport Authority terminated its transit reimbursement policy earlier this year which subsidized transit for those who work outside regular transit hours.

Airport concession workers have been actively advocating for a $25 living wage recently. This month, workers from YVR dining outlets operated by SSP Group issued 72-hour strike notice over concerns that wages need to be significantly raised to afford the cost of living.

A worker from an A&W airport outlet operated by MGM Food Services was terminated after she signed a petition calling for a $25 airport living wage and encouraged co-workers to sign. During a meeting, an MGM manager asked employees if they signed the petition and discovered that the worker had done so. Two weeks later, management fired the worker telling her she was “not a good fit for the company” despite having worked there for nearly for two years with no issues. The petition was signed by nearly 2,000 people and sent to the Airport Authority CEO.

“Vancouver Airport Authority should extend its living wage policy to cover the lowest paid workers at YVR Airport, most of them immigrant women, who provide an essential role at our airport.  While airport workers are struggling to stay afloat in an incredibly unaffordable city, YVR’s airport executives are doing better than ever.  No worker should fear losing their job because they demand a living wage. The Airport Authority has the power to do more to ensure workers can work with dignity and fair pay at YVR Airport,” said Zailda Chan, President of UNITE HERE Local 40.

To address economic inequality at YVR Airport, the report recommends that Vancouver Airport Authority:

  • Implement a $25 living wage policy for airport concession staff who earn less than a living wage.
  • Terminate contracts with operators who discriminate or violate the fundamental rights of workers.
  • Bring back the YVR transit reimbursement program for airport workers arriving or departing work outside regular transit hours.

 

Media Contact: Michelle Travis, [email protected], 778-960-9785.

Job Posting: We’re Hiring a Communications Specialist!

UNITE HERE Local 40 Job Posting: Communications Specialist/Campaigner (FT)

UNITE HERE is a progressive labour union, dedicated to creating greater equality and opportunity for workers in the hospitality industry. Communications Specialists are embedded in local worker campaigns and play a crucial role in designing comprehensive communications strategies using digital platforms, earned media and multi-media tools to raise the visibility of worker struggles. As a Communications Specialist/Campaigner with UNITE HERE Local 40, you will be part of a team that empowers people in low-wage service sector jobs to achieve better wages and benefits, dignity and basic rights at work.

Key responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

  • Collaborating with union leadership to develop, plan and lead communications strategies that support workers’ organizing and contract campaigns and analyzing effectiveness of strategies to improve campaigns.
  • Creating messaging and designing materials for effective communication with multiple audiences, including union members, allies, news media, and the general public.
  • Designing leaflets, materials, and social media content.
  • Planning and implementing earned media outreach, including pitching news stories, organizing media events, and training union members to be spokespersons.
  • Writing, editing and/or producing member communications, newsletters, websites, videos, news releases, opinion editorials, fact sheets, and social media posts.
  • Adapting written and visual materials for effective use on multiple platforms, including social media, digital advertising, email and petition platforms, and other media.
  • Managing Local 40’s website and social media accounts and regularly creating engaging content and posting to various platforms.
  • Documenting member events and actions, including taking photos and video, and using content in engagement tools and social media platforms.

Job Requirements/Qualifications:

  • Demonstrated commitment to social justice and the fight for workers’ rights.
  • Relevant experience in organizing campaigns, campaign communications, graphic design, and/or media relations.
  • BA degree or relevant work experience, with a minimum of one-year experience working in communications.
  • Excellent verbal and written communication skills, including the capacity to meaningfully engage with and frame issues for people of diverse backgrounds and life experiences.
  • Proven ability to effectively manage a workload with competing priorities and deadlines in a fast-paced environment.
  • Ability and willingness to travel and work long or irregular hours during times of critical campaign need.
  • Proactive, self-starter who enjoys working cooperatively with staff and members.
  • Experience with digital engagement and creatively using social media platforms and other engagement tools for campaigns.
  • Proficient in Adobe Creative Suite or other graphic design software.
  • Proficient in Microsoft Office or Google Business Suite.
  • Experience with creative media production in one more of the following areas: web development, photography, and/or video production/editing, a plus.
  • Valid driver’s license.

Salary starts at $60,000 but commensurate with experience and skills. 

To apply for this position: please email your resume, cover letter and a sample of your work (or a link to a website portfolio of your work) to [email protected].

 

Press Release: Labour Board rules Richmond hotel owner threatened, intimidated strikers on picket line

Vancouver, BC — Strikers at Radisson Blu Vancouver Airport have won a BC Labour Board decision that found the hotel employer repeatedly committed unfair labour practices during their strike. This decision comes as the workers recently marked their third year on the picket line.

In a decision written by Vice Chair Gurleen Sahota, the Board declared the employer and, in particular, Sukhminder Rai, the majority owner of Radisson Blu Vancouver Airport Hotel, breached the labour code by intimidating and threatening strikers on the picket line, many of whom are women and part of the Punjabi community. Mr. Rai also offered to pay off an older striker in an attempt to induce her to retire and abandon the strike.  Mr. Rai is the president of Surrey-based PHI Hotel Group, which operates Radisson Blu Vancouver Airport.

The decision cited several examples of the employer engaging in intimidation, threats, and an effort to undermine the bargaining unit, including:

  • On the picket line, Mr. Rai threatened a striking maintenance worker’s employment by telling him: “the day after I settle, you know, I can fire you.” Vice Chair Sahota found the threat had the impact of “exerting pressure” on the striker.
  • Rai told the strikers that he was getting rid of the hotel kitchen and there would not be jobs for striking kitchen staff. However, under cross-examination, Mr. Rai admitted to the Board that he planned to continue operating a kitchen at the hotel. Vice Chair Sahota noted Mr. Rai’s comments contradicted the employer’s bargaining proposal made months later which included kitchen staff. The Vice Chair found that Mr. Rai’s actions amounted to intimidation: “In effect, the manner and frequency in which the comments were made leads me to find Rai repeatedly implied that the employees picketing and ongoing support of the Union was futile because the employees would not have their jobs to return to.”
  • Rai repeatedly taunted one of the strikers, a Punjabi room attendant who had worked at the hotel for nearly 30 years, had spoken to press about the strike and is a member of the union bargaining committee.
  • The Vice Chair found that Mr. Rai also breached the code when he told an older striker she should stay home and take care of grandkids and offered to pay her to do so. Rai repeated this sentiment to strikers again at another time. His comments were made prior to the employer’s proposal which made no mention of retirement payments to strikers. The Vice Chair found this to be an unfair labour practice by encouraging a striker to no longer strike or be a member of the union and undermined the Union’s exclusive bargaining authority.

“This decision is a legal and moral victory.  The strikers have courageously refused to let the owner get away with attempts to threaten, intimidate, and undermine their union. It is not easy to stand up and fight for justice, but Radisson Blu Vancouver Airport strikers have resolved to fight for the respect they deserve.  This should send a strong message to any employer who thinks they are above the law,” said Zailda Chan, President of UNITE HERE Local 40.

The Labour Board has ordered the owner to cease and desist from further breaches of the Code. This ruling follows three previous consent awards in which the employer admitted to using impermissible replacement workers during the strike. Workers struck in May 2021 in protest over mass pandemic firings of 143 workers and the threat of economic rollbacks as the employer raked in millions when the hotel was used as a federal quarantine site.

In an unrelated case, Mr. Rai is currently being sued by a business partner, an affiliate of the Siksika Nation, for alleged fraud and misappropriation of $16 million in funds in connection to its management of Westin Calgary Airport when that hotel was used as a federal quarantine hotel.

Media Contacts: Sharan Pawa, [email protected], 604-710-1693; or Michelle Travis, [email protected], 778-960-9785

Press Release: Fired YVR Worker Files Human Rights Complaint Against Airport Operator

Worker Reports Discrimination After Standing Up for a Living Wage

 

Richmond, BC – An airport food worker has filed a human rights complaint against Vancouver Airport (YVR) operator, MGM Food Services, for discrimination. MGM terminated the worker days after she signed a public petition demanding a $25 living wage for all workers at YVR Airport and encouraged co-workers to sign.

MGM Food Services operates two A&W locations at YVR Airport. The worker, Ann John, was employed at the A&W outlet located in YVR’s international terminal for over a year and a half, having only ever receiving positive feedback for her work. Ms. John is a new Canadian working towards her permanent resident status. On April 4, she signed the petition calling for a $25 living wage at YVR. Ms. John was one of the hundreds who signed the petition to YVR CEO Tamara Vrooman asking for a living wage for all airport workers.

According to the complaint, MGM Food Services discouraged their staff from signing the petition because, among other things, they claimed it was “misleading people with false promises.” A few days after Ms. John had signed the petition, an all-employee meeting was held where management asked who had signed. At this meeting they learned Ms. John had signed and had encouraged others to sign. Two weeks later, after arriving for her shift, Ms. John was denied entry and fired. She was told she was “not a good fit for the company.”

“I don’t earn a living wage, and I struggle to make ends meet. I know that my co-workers struggle too. I believed in the cause, and I signed the petition, because better wages could really help myself and the people around me. MGM said I wasn’t a good fit, but in my opinion, the real reason they fired me was that I signed the petition,” said Ann John.

YVR Airport, which recently reclaimed its spot as North America’s number one airport, will be holding its Annual General Meeting tomorrow. The Vancouver Airport Authority is a certified living wage employer – yet over a thousand food service and retail workers at the airport are not covered by this policy.

“We are very concerned about how this non-union employee was treated by an airport operator, and YVR’s lack of interest in protecting workers’ rights”, stated Zailda Chan, President of UNITE HERE Local 40. “Workers who are included in YVR’s living wage policy are mostly white and mostly men. Workers excluded from the policy are mostly women of colour…and when they stand up for change, they lose their job? Is this really the top airport in North America?”

Ms. John is seeking reinstatement and compensation for injury to dignity, feelings, and self-respect. UNITE HERE Local 40 demands the Airport Authority ensure Ann is reinstated to her position and takes steps to cut ties with MGM Food Services for its actions.

 

Media Contact: Sharan Pawa, 604-710-1693, [email protected]

Job Posting: Union Organizer

UNITE HERE Local 40, BC’s union for hospitality workers, is seeking a Hotel Worker Organizer to recruit, train and mobilize workers to win strong workplace standards. We are committed to developing rank-and-file leadership, organizing the unorganized, and to building a strong, fighting labour union. Local 40 is a growing local union with a diverse membership working in hotels, food service, airports, and resource camps across the province.

Candidates must demonstrate a commitment to working for social justice through a strong a labour movement. The successful applicant we are looking for is driven, courageous, open to feedback, hard working, and a fighter with a deep commitment to social change. The position entails irregular hours including work in the evenings and weekends.

Responsibilities include:

  • Identify, recruit and develop worker-leaders through one-on-one communication;
  • Build and maintain active worker committees;
  • Excellent communication and interpersonal skills in order to move workers to take collective action and build power;
  • Identify and meet with worker leaders to recruit and train them as union leaders for their particular workplace campaign, in union and non-union settings;
  • Promote rank and file leadership development;
  • Identify workplace issues, learn the relevant collective agreement language, and pursue resolution through the grievance and arbitration procedures;
  • Move workers into action on the shop floor to enforce their rights;
  • Oversee and do grievance handling with worker leaders and organizers;
  • Help to organize and run meetings and large actions;
  • Frequently attend multiple distant locations within a short time span in order to meet with workers at their homes and other sites. Many of these locations will not be easily accessible by public transit.

 Qualifications:

  • Dedication to social and economic justice, and specifically to building a strong labor movement;
  • Demonstrated skill in developing leaders, building unity within a diverse group, and inspiring others to take action;
  • Demonstrated ability in running, planning and driving campaigns and goals;
  • Demonstrated ability to use independent judgment within the context of an overall plan and structure;
  • Excellent communication skills in one-on-one and group settings;
  • Good organizational and administrative skills, including basic computer skills;
  • Willing and able to travel to appropriate work sites, and to work long and irregular work hours;
  • Must have valid driver’s license.

 Job Requirements:

1 year of experience as a labour/union organizer, rank and file union activist, and/or experience working with the student, immigrant, LGBTQ+, and/or environmental activist communities.

Salary: $60,000 starting salary but commensurate with experience.

Contact: Interested applicants should submit a cover letter and resume outlining relevant experience and including references to [email protected]. Only candidates meeting all requirements will be contacted for interviews.