The union representing more than 5,200 Air Canada pilots has ratified a four-year collective agreement that includes multiple benefits gains, avoiding a possible strike.
The agreement includes physiotherapy coverage of up to $5,000 a year per plan member and lifetime coverage for fertility drugs up to $10,000. Employees will also have a choice between $500 per year in a health-care spending account or a wellness spending account. In addition, master of social work and registered social worker have been added to the list of eligible mental-health specialists, while acupuncturists have been added to the list of paramedical services.
Vision care will increase from $325 to $425 every 24 months, dental coverage will increase from $2,000 per person to $3,500 per person and orthodontic coverage for dependant children will increase from $2,500 to $3,000. Mental-health coverage will increase from 50 per cent at $1,000 per employee and $2,000 per family to $1,500 per employee and $3,000 per family.
Read: Air Canada, unions reach agreement to wind down pension trust
Paramedical coverage reimbursement will change from 50 per cent to 100 per cent, leisure travel insurance will increase from $50,000 to $5 million, coverage for diabetic delivery systems increases from $2,000 every 60 months to $6,000 per year and hearing aid coverage will increase from $2,000 to $3,000 every 60 months.
In other news, the union representing employees of the municipality of Saint-André-d’Argenteuil, Que., has ratified a five-year collective agreement that includes pension gains.
The agreement includes a one per cent increase in employees’ contribution to the defined contribution pension plan as well as one per cent contribution from the employer in 2025, and 0.5 per cent from both for the last two years of the agreement. Additionally, employees will see wage hikes of 21 per cent over the five years.
Read: Maple Leaf Foods, Unifor agreement includes pension, benefits gains