# 2024-120 Pay and Benefits, Pay and Benefits, Pilot's Pay and Promotion

Case summary

F&R Date: 2025-08-13

The grievor contested the decision to incorporate the Aircrew Allowance into the base pay rates for the Pilot occupation, while excluding from this decision other occupations that may, at times, qualify for this allowance. The grievor contended that the decision to exclude other aircrew occupations created an unfair situation where Pilots receive preferential compensation by including the allowance as part of their pensionable base salary. 

The Director General Air Strategic Resources and Air Reserve, acting as the Initial Authority (IA), contended that the Pilot pay rates are a matter unrelated to the grievor's pay as a General Service Officer (GSO) because, while Pilots and GSOs share the title of aircrew, they do not share the same pay structure. For these reasons, the IA considered that the grievor could not have been aggrieved by a decision concerning changes to Pilot pay and, consequently, rejected the grievance. 

The Committee noted that section 35 of the National Defence Act provides that the Treasury Board (TB) has authority over the rates and conditions of issue of pay for Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) members, as well as over payments that may be made to them by way of allowances for conditions arising out of their service. Furthermore, TB's authority is exercised, in part, by way of the Compensation and Benefits Instructions for the Canadian Forces (CBI). Therefore, while the CAF provide advice, ultimately it is TB which exercises the authority through the issuance of the related CBI. The Committee remarked that qualified Pilots do not receive Aircrew Allowance as a pensionable allowance. Instead, their eligibility for the allowance was eliminated in favour of a higher base pay. The Committee noted that this decision was entirely within the TB's authority. The Committee found that TB, in deciding to eliminate eligibility for the Aircrew Allowance and include exposure to the environmental conditions associated with flying operations as a factor in establishing the base salary for the Pilot occupation, acted within its authority to implement changes aimed at enhancing attraction and retention of Pilots to sustain the Royal Canadian Air Force's operational readiness and effectiveness. The Committee also found that the grievor was not aggrieved by this decision and recommended that the Final Authority not afford the grievor redress.