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Air Canada will lay off 30 young employees in the company's finance branch on Portage Avenue next month -- even though older workers are willing to take a buyout, their union says.

«They've identified 30 positions for layoff. We were told last Thursday,» Karene Strachan, shop committee chairwoman of Local 2603 of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, said Friday.

Strachan said the finance branch has 305 employees, who make an hourly wage ranging from $9.28 to $22.68. The 30 facing layoff all have seven years' experience or less.

In previous layoffs, Air Canada has offered six months' salary to those willing to leave, but has rejected any buyout this time, she said.

The layoffs take effect Nov. 15.

«I had a number of older workers say they would be willing to take a retirement package,» Strachan said.
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The workers scheduled for layoff would get their final paycheque a month before Christmas, and could not collect employment insurance until January, she said.

«They're people at the bottom; they're not making a lot of money to begin with,» said Strachan.

«They're constantly downsizing,» she said, adding there were recent layoffs among reservations staff. «The mood has really deteriorated.

«People are concerned, what's next?» Strachan said.

If people get laid off, they will leave the city to find work, she said. «If you look at the demographics of the city, there's less and less younger workers.»

An Air Canada spokesman said layoffs are decided by seniority.

«The affected employees do have recall rights,» said Peter Fitzpatrick from Toronto, adding, «We're still talking with the union about mitigating strategies, such as job-sharing or leaves of absence.»

Air Canada has offered early retirement packages occasionally, he said, but, «They really aren't the norm in the work environment.»

(Winnipeg Free Press)