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District 140 |Bulletin 011. Employee & Family Assistance Program; Air Canada Layoffs due to COVID-19

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Dear Sisters and Brothers:
In the coming days and weeks, we can expect layoffs for some of our IAM members within District 140 at Air Canada. The EFAP has compiled a list of helpful links to ease the stress of applying for the assistance you may need. Keep in mind, that after COVID-19 has been eradicated, the financial hardships may continue. If you do not have a budget for your home, you may want to consider making one, there are many apps that can help you create a budget and access where you can save money.
Employment Insurance wait times have been eliminated for those laid off due to COVID -19. However, due to the volume of Canadians being laid off, the queue to deal with your claim will be much longer than usual.
https://www.canada.ca/en/employment-social-development/corporate/notices/coronavirus.html
Canada Revenue Agency, yearly income tax deadline to file taxes has been extended to June 1, 2020. Also, the date for taxes to be paid has been extended to August 31 without interest.
https://www.ctvnews.ca/health/coronavirus/the-tax-deadline-has-been-extended-due-to-the-covid-19-crisis-1.4858098
Student loan and debt relief is available for those paying student loans
https://www.canada.ca/en/employment-social-development/corporate/notices/coronavirus.html
Many IAM members have small businesses to supplement their income. The following link will help you apply for financial aid for your small business.
https://www.canada.ca/en/services/business/maintaingrowimprovebusiness/resources-for-canadian-businesses.html
If you are out of the country trying to get home, the government has created a loan program to help those needing to purchase flights, food and lodging.
https://travel.gc.ca/assistance/emergency-info/financial-assistance/covid-19-financial-help
The following is a link to an article on the Canadian IAMAW website. The article has further links to resources, throughout the country, for counseling and hotlines for crisis situations.
http://www.iamaw.ca/15623/
If you are in a position that your debt load is overwhelming, and you need help with consolidating your expenses, we have compiled a group of companies that consolidate debt and counsel you for debt management. Some of these companies are national and others are regional.

Credit Canada National https://www.creditcanada.com/
Sands and Associates British Columbia https://www.sands-trustee.com/
Farber British Columbia https://www.afarber.com/covid-19-updates/
Money Mentors Alberta https://moneymentors.ca/
Farber Alberta https://www.afarber.com/covid-19-updates/
Credit Counseling Society Saskatchewan https://www.nomoredebts.org/
LC Taylor Manitoba https://lctaylor.com/
Farber Ontario https://www.afarber.com/covid-19-updates/
Spergal Ontario https://www.spergel.ca/
Pierre Roy Quebec https://pierreroy.com/en/
Raymond Chabot Quebec https://www.raymondchabot.com/en/
Credit Counselling Services Atlantic Canada https://www.solveyourdebts.com/

In solidarity,

Derrick Bashford
Employee Assistance Program
National EFAP Coordinator
Central Region

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    Dear Sisters and Brothers,
    On April 28, 2022, PDGC Dave Flowers and I met with Air Canada regarding EAP Funding. Due to a change made by the Government of Canada, Air Canada and the IAMAW no longer qualify for the Government’s Employee Insurance Reduction Plan. The EI Reduction plan has funded the EFAP for the past 20 years.
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    For many years, our members have enjoyed the comfort of chatting to a peer for assistance with their concerns. Sometimes this was a need to vent about the work environment. Other members’ needs were far more intricate and required the help of a professional. The EFAP has helped our members at all hours without fail, and the team of caring individuals wants to continue to support our friends and colleagues. Currently, there is enough funding to continue our EFAP work. However, our program will terminate early next year without additional EI Reduction monies. I have met with the Negotiations Committee about their thoughts on bargaining to change our current STD to the required seven days. I didn’t receive any indication if the committee would pursue this line of negotiation or not. Also, I am not sure that Air Canada will want to negotiate this item.
    Air Canada has offered to add IAMAW members to the company-funded EAP they use. The program consists of LifeWorks and Maple’s online app. LifeWorks is an equal program to Homewood, and Maple is essentially a 24/7 online medical walk-in clinic. We are unaware if the union members you know, and trust, will have a role in this program. Given our forty-plus years of working with our members, I believe our program exceeds anything the company can offer.
    I realize this bulletin may generate many questions. Questions that we may not have the answers to right now. I will continue to update as I have more information. Today, we are business as usual, and your EFAP is still available to you for the foreseeable future.
    In Solidarity,
    Derrick Bashford
    National EFAP Coordinator Transportation District 140, IAMAW

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