Mississauga, ON – IAM Canadian General Vice-President Stan Pickthall met with the Executive Board of IAM Local Lodge 2921 on July 20th to talk about Political Action and the issue of airport privatization that is looming over Canadian airports.
“Many of our Locals are rallying against the privatization of airports and Local Lodge 2921 is working hard to get signatures on our petition to stop the Liberal government from moving in this dangerous direction,” said Pickthall. “They are also educating our members on this critical issue,” he said.
Earlier this year the Liberal government floated a trial balloon suggesting it would sell off Canada’s eight largest airports and 18 smaller airports to generate anywhere from $7.2 to $16.2 billion in revenue. The pushback from most airport authorities and airport unions including the largest – The IAM – was immediate and loud. “We denounced the idea and immediately began to circulate a petition with the IAM membership for delivery to Ottawa demanding the government stop any further action on the issue,” said Pickthall. Local Lodge 2921 members have already met with at least two airport MPs seeking support to stop any sale of Canada’s airports.
However, documents obtained earlier this week by CBC News, reveals the federal government has secretly hired Price Waterhouse Coopers to consult on the sale of the airports. The sale of airport equity was not included in the 2017 federal budget. A government spokesman said all that is happening is more due diligence, adding there’s enough interest in the concept but not enough to make a decision on it.
The IAM has publicly denounced any moves to privatize Canada’s public infrastructure and turn it into a for-profit model. Pickthall applauds Canadian IAM Locals for their action against privatization.
Our online petition can be found HERE. Please support us in our efforts to defeat this Liberal corporate agenda.
