I would like to start with the aviation industry and the airports.
The number one operational assumption of any airport in Canada and in the world is always the worst-case scenario. We process in Toronto--the travelling public--80,000 passengers per day, 31 million per year. I'm not a lawyer, but I've been in this business for 30 years, labour relations, and the only thing I can provide you with is empirical evidence from the operator side. We have nine contracts with CAW; two with PSAC, the Public Service Alliance of Canada; and one with our firefighters. In the last ten and a half years, we have been through negotiations three times.
The first was very difficult, because when Pearson was transferred from Transport Canada, we inherited 27 collective agreements and nine unions. We were able to essentially blend all these agreements and unions into two units. So you can imagine going through negotiations...25 or 26 of them with different needs. Unfortunately for the two parties, we ended up with a strike--38 days. This was in 1998, before essential services. Anyway, we survived. The two parties were able to see the light. We found wisdom, helped by the deputy minister.
In the second round of negotiations we almost had a strike. We were able to negotiate a three-year contract. In those days, we had SARS in Toronto, so it was very tough.
The third set of negotiations was this past summer, and we, the employer and the union, can claim victory. We have a four-year contract. It's a beautiful contract.
What I'm trying to say is that the balance is there. In this kind of business, the labour relations field, you don't develop relationships overnight. It takes a long time. There is always tomorrow in this business.