technician

heavy equipment mechanic

sableur

aircraft maintenance technician

operations manager

Aeromag

AeroMag YVR definitely has a very diverse group of employees and dynamic work environment. From young to old, experienced to fresh out of High school, different people from different cultures and LGBTQ, the mix of people really brings out the best in everyone, despite that the downside to this mix is a fair bit of personal workplace drama, which is to be expected at any workplace. But despite any downfalls anyone might have at any given moment, or the relaxed, on-call environment inside the crew shack does not attribute to any type of complacency when the going gets tough. When the weather drops, and operations boom out of nowhere, the excellent initial training and humans factor training we receive and re-certify every year kicks in, and everyone is able to drop what they're doing and consistently put out solid performances under extreme pressure. This job is definitely very fulfilling in both the busy work, and the relaxed "on call" time. 

Keep in mind, this is a seasonal job, and high wages and steady hours are not to be expected of any job of this nature. But that's not to say that the wages, even the starting wages are quite fair for the work performed, and highly competitive of other similar airport jobs. Plus, the hours are there to reap in the winter if you want them, just not any other time of year. 

The management does an amazing job at keeping employee morale up, and listening to concerns on top of running a smooth operation. As said above, many of the employees are young, and going to school, and management is extremely supportive in letting them study during on call time. This really is one of the few companies where you feel like supervisors and operations managers actually care about the well-being of their employees. 

Overall, I would highly recommend working here if you're looking for a good seasonal job with flexible hours. The job is very stable during it's normal season of operations, and although they do have operations year-long, don't expect much outside of the winters. 

Very fun job. Lots of learning as you work with very cool machinery around large aircraft. Very safe procedure and process lots of training involved. Shifts are very weird rotations and if full time are very long and gruelling. And not paid nearly enough for the importance and skills required. Very relaxed down time. Balance between the down time and high pressure work balances out, preventing fatigue except for in particularly severe weather conditions where you work yourself very hard and can be challenging on the mind and body. Lots of room to grow and move up and work in different areas of company. Management is questionable. Very obvious favouritism, and a lack of consistency in both the standards and expectations. Management is not very trustworthy and the more you advance the worse it gets. Lots of competition both in your face and behind backs. Lots of power battles and gossip and lies at times. If you are someone to just go and get your job done and get paid and are not worried about advancing or being a part of the “cliques” then you will be fine but don’t expect any attention if you decide you want to learn something new. 

This place used to be relatively fun but this year new management has stepped in and now Aeromag is just a terrible place to work. Full time employees are put on 12 hour shifts and if you are spraying all day, breaks are non existent so you better hope you brought enough food and water with you in the truck. Then after a 12 hour day with no breaks they try to guilt you into coming in on your days off to help out, no thanks.

The managers and supervisors treat people like children. On warmer days all you do is sit (or stand) in the shop while management orders you around to do silly shop tasks you didn't know you signed up for, then they just sit in their offices doing who knows what.

They pay is a joke, operating heavy equipment in winter conditions around multi million dollar planes while engines are screaming outside is only worth just above minimum wage apparently. 

The disorganisation is comical, nothing gets directly passed down from management so nobody knows if something that has been said is true or not. Constant red flags show up like being told to go hide when airline reps come in because the managers don't want us to be seen, or on warmer days being told management wants you to go home early so they don't have to pay you.

The Company it's self is Great . However employee turnover is high as its a seasonal Job. 99% of employees are under 30 years old and students. Zero incentive from the company to retain skilled employees. If its your first Job or Just got your drivers licence great place to start. The entire management Report to HQ, to increase company profits. The work culture is  Millennials and generation z, as no other group will work this Job for below standard wages. There is also zero room for advancement with this company. All jobs have a cap which is extremely low. More importantly Job says FOD (this is garbage collection) you are required to collect garbage all day as Vancouver weather has no deicing planes everyday. Just saying the Job title should say garbage collector. The supervisors and Managers also have little to no room for advancement even after 10 plus years of working here. NON UNION Environment. Their extended health care is a joke. You can ask what percentage they cover 10% or something like that. Don't waste your time here. You have zero room for moving up. These are all facts

Well where do I start... Inadequate training you just get thrown in head first which is terrifying..
People who get hired are operating million dollar deice trucks around multimillion dollar airplanes in an essential safety role, but are often trained by the technicians from the training class a week prior to theirs. 
Operates on an employee agreement that eliminates any chance at over time, and full time employees aren't even guaranteed full time hours throughout the entire season and hours can be reduced with minimal notice. At the same time, when the weather is bad you're looked down on if you're not willing to stay past your shift ( even on days you’ve worked 15 hours) also the turnover rate is bigger than a 747  which means it's the under qualified and unequipped are often the ones promoted to leadership roles, not only causing a chaotic unsafe operation, but the unprofessional environment leads to a toxic high school atmosphere among the workforce. 
And if that isn’t enough for you the managers go to the terminal to play Pokémon or sit in the office and “organize” all day. 
Don’t waste your time like I did

On days it doesn’t snow or there’s no frost on the aircraft, our days consists of just sitting around, doing chores like picking up FOD around the airport, cleaning the trucks and service vehicles, cleaning up the workplace and other miscellaneous work. Once it starts snowing, radios start chirping, and you hop in the deicing trucks, that’s when the fun starts. Fun and laid back co-workers and supervisors are part of what makes this job enjoyable. De-icing a plane and using the vehicles (especially the BETAs) is super fun. 

More Pros and Cons:

Pros;

- VERY flexible scheduling 
- Fun and laid back co-workers and supervisors and very supportive 
- Great balance with work, life, and school
 
Cons;

- Not a lot of room to grow in the company 
- Underpaid
- Seasonal job (there is summer work but that’s Con #5)
- No good benefits (yes that means no travel benefits unfortunately)
- Picking up and sweeping garbage/FOD around the airport is part of the job

Bottom line:

Aero Mag is a great workplace as a first airport job but I would not recommend you do this as your main career. But it may be a good job when you’re still looking to work after retirement.

Pretty average entry-level job at the airport. 

Super cool and fun job itself when it's busy.

Pay is surprisingly low for the amount of responsibility that comes with the job, however, there is lots of opportunity for overtime, just don't expect to be paid time and a half for it. They do this thing called "averaged overtime" which is a complete joke, and if you quit before the season ends, they won't give you any at all.

The turnover rate is extremely high with most technicians being on their first season leading to under training and lack of consistency throughout the shifts.

Some of the supervisors can't seem to handle stress and take it out on their subordinates which can make the environment a bit uncomfortable. However, if you find your people and stick around them, it'll be just fine. Higher-level managers are ok, however, they don't seem to have much control or power to change what needs to be changed, or at least that's what they'll tell you.



I've been here at the company for many years. In part, that is why I have good hours here and a good position.

I would still apply to work here if I needed a job in aviation. It can be exciting or it can be dull.

Usually you are on standby at low throughput stations, but if there is cold/snow/or adverse weather causing aircraft contamination, prepare for a busy shift. That means hitting the washroom prior to deploying on the deicing pad or prior to your shift in the tower, or even before assisting in a service vehicle.

Management can be 80/20. 80% of the time they're ok and helpful, 20% of the time they're crooked or degrade you because they think you should feel their pain. They also have a slight nepotism for those 20% which may lead to time theft with the related employees.

Overall, a good company to work for. Definitely requires attention to detail and people from the aviation or related industries. Pilots, ATC, Ground Crews, Tow operators, Students, airport Management or Supervisors are good fit.

pays decent for an entry level job, the work and the people are great. Diverse workplace, even with the "high school drama" you'd expect from an entry level job with a majority of younger employees, everyone still gets along at the end of the day, and no matter the differences between the people, the advanced, standardized and in-depth training we receive always ensures a smooth operation when on the job. The management is all good people like the coworkers, and will always do their best to accomodate your busy lifestyle needs. In a nutshell, this is a good place to keep your income rolling in while in school, or getting back on your feet, and the good people behind the company will always take care of you as long as you can do your job with a good attitude.

All they seem to care about here is efficiency to please the airport, and they compromise safety to do so. Concerns brought to the management team go nowhere. 12 hour days turn into 15 with no appreciation; only frustration from management when you become burnt out. 
Nighttime management will release confidential information to technicians, and proceed to tell you that he’s not supposed to tell anyone that so keep it on the DL. They’ll also actively berate employees over radio frequencies on for everyone to hear, instead of “coaching” employees in a private setting. Breaks are sometimes non existent, but you still get half hour deducted daily for a break regardless.

They really don’t care about you, your safety, or your time. Do not waste your time here. 

Top Job Titles	Average salary
Technician 1 salary reported	$19.25 per hour
Heavy equipment mechanic 1 salary reported	$40.00 per hour
Sableur 1 salary reported	$22.32 per hour
Aircraft maintenance technician 1 salary reported	$18.50 per hour
Operations manager 1 salary reported	$70,000 per year

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