Staff layoffs at Fort MacMurray International Airport are being protested by airport workers in the hope that this will make a difference and prevent the layoffs from happening as planned. Dozens of workers at the facility spent last Monday picketing the airport and protesting the decision that was announced. It is not just that the staff layoffs are planned but also that these workers will be replaced by a company which has used temporary foreign workers in the past which adds insult to injury. According to airport management the decision to contract out the custodial services currently handled by a custodial staff of 23 full time and 1 part time workers was to save costs and lower the operating budget. This move means that the custodial staff will be laid off.

If the staff layoffs at Fort MacMurray International Airport actually occur many fear that the services outsourced will be performed by temporary foreign workers. The company identified to take over custodial services on June 1 of this year has been identified as Bill’s General Cleaning, Imported Goods and Consulting Ltd. Has a past history of hiring temporary foreign workers and some groups argue that the company has ties to Bill’s Recruiting which is in the business of recruiting and placing temporary foreign workers. If that is the case then it would make sense for the company to use foreign workers to fill the jobs opened by the staff layoffs at Fort MacMurray International Airport. The idea that Canadian citizens would be let go so that foreign workers can replace them does not sit well with many people.