On Monday March 30^th, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced a wage subsidy to help all businesses, big or small, including charities and not-for-profits to a maximum 75% wage subsidy.

Although details are short on how the program will be implemented and when, what is known is that to qualify, businesses or enterprises must have at least a 30% reduction in revenue due to the novel coronavirus. The subsidy will cover up to 75% of the first $58,700 of an employee’s wages.

What does this mean for UCTE members?

Over the past few weeks, many of our private sector members have been faced with layoffs. Members have had many challenges including having some employers not follow the layoff clauses in their respective collective agreements.

For our members this announcement could be a game-changer with regards to whether or not they will be laid off. All UCTE private sector employers such as airport authorities including IT, airport security and fuellers as well as Nav Canada should be able to qualify for the subsidy. Furthermore, this assistance should be enough to allow employers to top-off member’s salaries.

UCTE is committed to helping members keep their jobs during this critical time. We will continue to update you as we learn more.