Flight Attendant Pre-Employment Diploma

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This commentary has provided to help students gain information about their desired career goals. Please note that this information has been collected specifically for Air Canada Employment Guidelines. Other airlines may have varying employment standards. It is very important that students review the employment requirements of the airlines as some requirements will vary from airline to airline.

Training length and Pay: The initial training with Air Canada is 9 weeks. Wages are $320 per week which can be deposited into a bank account every 2 weeks.

Salary: The starting salary with Air Canada is $27.34 per hour. Employees are paid once a month with a cash advance of $800 on the 1st of each month. The balance of pay is received on the 17th of the month (this includes flight pay & expense allowances).

Blocks: This is a unionized position (where applicable). Under the current collective agreement employees are allowed a minimum guaranteed flying time of 65 hours per month (winter schedule) and 70 hours per month (summer schedule) to a maximum of 75 hours a month.

Salary Advancement: Employees receive a substantial pay increase each year. Top salary is reached (this varies according to position and aircraft type flown) by year 8.

Relocation: Employees could be relocated to YHZ, YUL, YYZ, YWG, YYC, or YVR and will be advised of such relocation approximately two weeks prior to graduation.

Relocation Allowance: Employees will be given double occupancy in a hotel for a seven-day period; however, individuals are responsible for additional expenses incurred (food, room charges, entertainment, etc.)

Moving Expenses: Employees are permitted 50 kilograms of freight, free of charge.

Initial Training: The passing grade is 90% on all exams. Trainees will be scheduled into either am or pm classes and will receive 2 days off per week (not necessarily weekends). Hotel, meals and transportation to and from the training center are provided. Employees are responsible for any additional expenses incurred (i.e.: dry cleaning, pay-per-view movies, etc.). The pace is rapid throughout the curriculum and only 3 'NI's' (Needs Improvement) will be allowed. Should a trainee receive more than the allotted quota, they will be sent home. If the new employee is late for class or 'no-show' once, they will be sent home.

Benefits: Employees will receive excellent medical, dental, life insurance, pension and travel benefits. These come into effect at different times during the 6-month probationary period. Union dues are paid from onset of training but don't kick in until your probationary period is over.

Reserve: Employees are guaranteed 13 days off per month. For the remainder of the month the employee is required to be on call 24 hours a day.Blocks (flight schedules) are bid according to seniority. Employees should be prepared to work nights, weekends, and statutory holidays for an extended period of time.

Layoffs: Layoffs are issued in reverse order of seniority.

Job Advancement: Because this is a unionized position (in some cases), advancement is determined by seniority. Employees must have 30 months experience to bid the 'In-Charge' position, and the current wait to bid 'up' is 12 years. There will be occasional opportunities to move into management positions in Air Crew Training and In-flight Administration.

Blocks: All flying is bid on a monthly basis and includes domestic and international routes. The average block time is 70 hours, no open flying permitted.

Layover Allowances: Individuals must have enough cash to pay for layover expenses; however, meals applicable for scheduled time away are claimed on expense sheets and reimbursed on the 17th of each month.Windows do apply.

Job Demands: Employees will be coping with irregular hours and long duty days (often exceeding 15 hours), most of which are spent standing up. Employees will frequently be required to lift heavy equipment (10 kg.And up), which sometimes results in chronic back problems. Employees will be constantly challenged by cabin pressurization, the slightly hypoxic atmosphere at altitude, chronic jet lag, and the extended time away from home base.

A Brief History: The position of flight attendant has a long and distinguished history. The first "flight stewards" ever employed were men over in Europe who served coffee and cold chicken sandwiches to their 3 or 4 passengers while dressed in stuffy white suits. PanAm employed stewards on their flying boats to the Caribbean and South America. A lady named Ellen Church thought passengers would feel safer and more at ease if there was a female registered nurse on board. So in 1930, Boeing Air Transport hired 8 women to be the first ever "stewardesses" on their Boeing Model 80-A's. It was a hit, and men did not return to the profession until the 1970's.

We hope that this commentary has provided valuable information to help with the career decision-making process.

Good Luck and 'Thank You' for your interest in Canadian Tourism College.

*Please note that the above information was developed specifically for Air Canada Employment Guidelines. Other airlines may have varying employment standards. It is very important to review employment requirements of other airlines.