Conservatives putting Canadian airline passengers at risk

OTTAWA – NDP Transport, Infrastructure and Communities critic Olivia Chow (Trinity – Spadina) is urging the Conservatives to reconsider their reckless decision to decrease the mandatory number of flight attendants aboard Canadian planes.

“The Conservatives should stop charging huge airport fees if they care about protecting Canadian jobs and the airline industry,” said Chow. “Instead they are compromising passengers’ safety by reducing flight attendants.”

The Conservative government’s recent decision to permit WestJet to have only one flight attendant for every 50 passenger seats sets a dangerous precedent that compromises passenger safety. Air Canada has also applied to Transport Canada for a similar allowance on North American flights. The Conservative government intends to change existing regulations so that all Canadian airlines can switch to the one to 50 ratio.

If the federal government stubbornly continues on this slippery path to jeopardize passenger safety by granting the exemption requested by Air Canada, CUPE will launch a legal challenge.

“It is irresponsible to play Russian roulette with Canadians’ lives,” said CUPE Airline Division President Michel Cournoyer. “Because the rights and interests of our members to a safe and secure workplace will be directly affected, we are entitled to make our case for passenger safety before an exemption is granted.''