Canada’s airports: Not for profit. Not for sale.

Canada’s airports:
Not for profit. Not for sale.

Don’t let privatization send air travel costs soaring higher.

Join the day of action against airport privatization on December XX.

Our public airports are built by and for Canadians, to keep people and businesses moving across our vast country. They are national public infrastructure, not an ATM for private investors.

Airports should serve passengers, not shareholders.

Will you be there? RSVP for an action near you.

What’s At Stake

At the Canada Investment Summit (Sept. 14-15), Prime Minister Mark Carney announced to an audience of foreign investors his intention to sell off control of Canada’s four largest airports (Toronto’s Pearson, Montreal’s Trudeau, Calgary International and Vancouver International).

Everywhere it has been tried, selling airports to private investors has produced the same results: higher fees, worse working conditions, fewer regional connections and eroding safety standards.

Canadians already face expensive and sometimes unreliable air travel. Airport workers already face pressure on wages and staffing. Privatization will ramp up these problems, as investors hunt for profits by hiking fees and cutting the staff that keep airports moving. We’ll all pay the price if the federal government sells off control of our four biggest airports.

AFFORDABILITY

When investors win, travellers lose. In the UK and Australia, selling off airports led to higher prices for everything from landing fees to parking spaces to luggage carts. Australian airports raised fees by 81% in the decade after privatization. At London’s Heathrow, people bringing family members to the airport are charged a £7 ($13) drop-off fee – and fined £80 ($150) if they stay more than 10 minutes.

Canadians already pay some of the highest airline ticket prices in the world. The last thing we need are privatized airports sending them even higher.

Connecting Canadians

Handing control to private investors could lead airlines to cut regional connections. In Australia, regional air service for smaller communities declined noticeably after privatization. Australia’s major airlines consolidated their networks around the largest hub airports that were privatized and regional communities’ lost access as a result.. Airports should make it easier to connect with the people and places that matter. Privatization puts those connections at risk.

Good JObs

Workers shouldn’t pay the price. There are 224,000 workers at Canada’s airports, half of whom work at the four airports on the auction block (YYZ, YVR, YUL, YYC). Private investors will try to squeeze profits out of airport workers through outsourcing, contract flipping and staff cuts. After privatization, Australia’s Sydney Airport laid off 40% of its workforce once job protections expired – while posting a $376 million profit the same year. Privatization threatens airport maintenance, cleanliness and safety. Protecting experienced workers and decent working conditions helps protect reliable service.

Public Control

We can’t afford to give away control of a key part of our national infrastructure to unaccountable private operators. Our airports serve a bigger purpose:. They connect communities, support local jobs and move cargo. They also fund public services: Airports pay $525 million per year in rent to the federal government. Today, any profits generated by airports are reinvested directly. Under privatization, airports’ profits would go straight into the pockets of private investors, who see airports as a chokepoint to squeeze profits out of travellers, airlines and communities. Why else would financial giants like BlackRock put up tens of billions of dollars to buy Canada’s airports? Decisions about their future should put our needs first.

A Better Way Forward

Don’t let private investors take over our airports. OR: Stop the private investor takeover of our airports.
Protect good union jobs, collective agreements and fair working conditions.
Reinvest airport revenues in infrastructure and better passenger service.
Strengthen affordability, transparency and public accountability.

FAQ

What does privatization actually mean? Aren’t airport authorities already private?

Most major airports are federally owned, and operated under long-term leases with private, not-for-profit airport authorities. Their revenues are reinvested. The federal government’s plan for-profit control makes returns for investors a new priority.

What if the government still owns the airports?

The government’s long-term privatization plan gives private investors unprecedented power over fees and day-to-day operations. These decades-long deals give away the keys to public land and facilities, keeping ownership in name only. The campaign opposes that transfer of control to for-profit operators.

Don’t airports need private investment?

Airports need investment. But we don’t need to give away control to private investors. Airport authorities can already borrow money to improve and expand facilities under the current system.

Would pension fund investment be different?

Once the door is open to privatization, it will not be closed again. While there is no guarantee that the owners will be Canadian, one thing is certain: No matter who the private operator is, their priority will be to generate profits, not serve the public interest. We’ll all pay the price.

Yes, even pension funds have a legal obligation to maximize investment returns.

Is the current system perfect?

No. Passengers deserve more affordable travel and better service. Workers deserve stable jobs and fair conditions. The answer is to improve the system with public accountability and investment that serves those goals.

Make your voice heard

Tell your MP: our airports are not for sale.

Tell your Member of Parliament that you are against airport privatization and support affordable travel, good jobs and public accountability.

Get the full picture from our coalition

A coalition of unions, including Council of Canadians, Unifor, CUPE, UCTE (PSAC), Leadnow, and others, are planning a day of action at airports across Canada on Dec. 19/20 to fight airport privatization.

Explore research and existing campaigns from labour and public-interest organizations.

Canada’s airports: Not for profit. Not for sale.