ACTA Pushes Government Benefit Changes and $3 Billion for Agents

Much has been done to help Canadian travel agents and advisors. But there’s still a great deal to do help them through the COVID-19 crisis.

ACTA president Wendy Paradis was the guest for Tuesday’s TravelPulse Canada Facebook Live 1 on 1 chat and outlined a series of actions her organization is taking to help beleaguered agents deal with the worldwide pandemic.

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“ACTA has been talking to the government every single day pretty much since the cruise travel advisory was announced (by the Prime Minister in March). We actually were one of the first associations at the table.

“We were very keen to focus on travel agency workers first and really played a key role for making that (government assistance) work for not only employees but for independent travel agents. We had a strong voice at the table there, so we’re pleased with the outcome. Our travel agencies of course are in a cash crunch, so we’ve been talking to the government about low-cost loans, forgiveables, etc...,” Paradis said.

“The next thing is we’ve actually put in front of the government that we believe that travel agencies are going to require approximately $3 billion in specific aid to get through this crisis.”

Paradis said travel agents and other Canadians were able to start applying for monetary relief under the federal CERB program as of Monday, April 6. In addition, travel agency employees have been paying into EI, “so they’re actually eligible for both programs.”

The CERB program is available for 16 weeks, but there are rules surrounding the payments.

“Most of the questions we’re getting from independent travel agents .... is that they must have made $5,000 in the last calendar year, in 2019, and they can not have received any revenue or compensation for 14 days. Definitely the questions coming into to ACTA are around that 14 days, so we’ll continue to work with all the travel agencies that have independent travel agents. We have a direct line to the government so we’re actually asking for exceptions for travel agencies because of the way that we get paid,” she said.

In addition to federal support for workers, special help for business is supposed to kick in on April 17. Paradis said ACTA will be putting on a webinar on April 16 to help travel agencies and independent agents understand the rules and requirements.

Paradis said the association every day hears from travel agents who are concerned about the issue of refunds versus future travel vouchers or credits.

“There was a lot of confusion early on,” but the industry has settled on credits as the best way to handle the COVID-19 crisis.

“It’s seen as a win for the travel suppliers, a win for the travel agencies and a win for the consumer. I empathize with the travel consumer, for sure. But I think that conversation’s not over yet. I think now that things have settled down ... that conversation is coming up more and more. I think there will be a further conversation between government, travel agencies and travel suppliers.”

Paradis said ACTA is finalizing a “grid” of what’s happening around Canada in terms of vouchers, refunds and chargebacks, and that ACTA will meet with representatives of 30 large agencies on Thursday April 9 to look at the grid and come up with recommendations to create more consistency across the board.

ACTA is a non-profit group that’s funded by travel agencies.

“We do have a rainy-day fund and we’re tapping into it daily right now,” Paradis said. “The vast majority of large travel agencies are members of ACTA, all of the consortia, all of the home-based travel agencies are members of ACTA, so all of that helps with our funding. I think where we can get the greatest help right now is through independent travel agents, as well as small travel agencies. We would ask small travel agencies in particular and independent travel agents if they could become members or contribute to our COVID-19 emergency advocacy fund. A strong voice is necessary.”

She also said ACTA is pushing the case for more travel agent help on social media, particularly Twitter. Agents can help amplify the group’s message on Twitter (@ACTACanada).

NEXT UP: Jamaica Tourism Minister Edmund Bartlett, Thursday April 9 at 12:30 p.m. EST