Bill C-5 explained in plain English
An Act to provide for the resumption and continuation of air service operations
Federal Parliament bill summary, status, timeline, sponsor, votes, and official sources.
Short answer
Bill C-5 provides a framework to resume air service operations by resolving disputes between Air Canada, its union, and the government through arbitration, collective agreement extensions, and penalties for non-compliance.
At a glance
Official Parliament of Canada snapshot for 41st Parliament, 1st Session. MP vote breakdowns appear when the House of Commons publishes a recorded division export for that bill. Senate and House stage details include official debate/sitting links when LEGISinfo publishes them.
AI-generated from official bill text; automatically checked and spot-reviewed.
Bill C-5 provides a framework to resume air service operations by resolving disputes between Air Canada, its union, and the government through arbitration, collective agreement extensions, and penalties for non-compliance.
Bill C-5 aims to resume and maintain air service operations by resolving disputes between Air Canada, its union (CAW), and the Minister of Labour. It extends an expired collective agreement, prohibits strikes and lockouts during dispute resolution, and establishes an arbitration process to finalize a new agreement. The bill also sets penalties for violations and defines enforcement mechanisms.
- Establishes the Continuing Air Service for Passengers Act (Section 1) to ensure air services continue
- Mandates resumption of air service operations by employers and employees (Section 3)
- Prohibits strikes, lockouts, and disciplinary actions related to pre-Act strikes (Section 4)
- Extends the expired collective agreement between Air Canada and CAW until a new agreement is reached (Section 6(1))
- Requires an arbitrator to select a final offer from either party within 90 days (Section 10-11)
- Prevents court challenges against the arbitrator's decisions (Section 12)
- Allows a new collective agreement to be signed before arbitration concludes (Section 14)
- Imposes fines for violations: $50,000 for officers, $1,000 for others, and $100,000 for employers/unions (Section 16-18)
- Deems unions as 'persons' under the Act (Section 19)
- Air Canada
- Canadian Airline Pilots' Association (CAW)
- Employers in the airline industry
- Unions representing airline workers
- Arbitrators appointed under the Act
- Government agencies responsible for enforcement
- The exact criteria for 'economic viability' in final offers is not specified in the text.
- The duration of the extended collective agreement beyond March 1, 2011, is not explicitly stated.
- The process for selecting an arbitrator is not detailed in the summary.
The bill modifies provisions related to collective agreements and dispute resolution mechanisms under the Canada Labour Code.
The expired agreement is extended until a new agreement is reached, ensuring continuity of air services.
Generated using AI from official bill text. Not legal advice. Coverage is limited to the official text extracted for this bill version.
Official textParliamentary Process
We don't have a plain-language summary for First reading yet. The official source linked below is the full record.
We don't have a plain-language summary for Second reading yet. The official source linked below is the full record.
We don't have a plain-language summary for Third reading yet. The official source linked below is the full record.
We don't have a plain-language summary for First reading yet. The official source linked below is the full record.
We don't have a plain-language summary for Introduction and first reading yet. The official source linked below is the full record.
We don't have a plain-language summary for Second reading yet. The official source linked below is the full record.
We don't have a plain-language summary for Consideration in committee yet. The official source linked below is the full record.
We don't have a plain-language summary for Report stage yet. The official source linked below is the full record.
We don't have a plain-language summary for Third reading yet. The official source linked below is the full record.
Debate and sitting links point to official parliamentary sources when LEGISinfo publishes them. Any plain-language discussion summaries should be generated from those official texts and reviewed before public display.
Vote Summary
This bill is still active. We only show vote counts after the legislature publishes a recorded division.
No published representative vote breakdown
This bill is still moving through the process. When a recorded division is published, representative positions can be listed here.
Official sources
This plain-English summary is based on official legislative sources and public records. It is intended for civic education and is not legal advice.
How this data is sourced