The Globe and Mail reports in its Wednesday edition that pilots at Cargojet will receive a 46-per-cent wage boost under a new five-year contract, which the company says aims to boost productivity as the firm reaches for new business in Europe, Asia and Africa. A Canadian Press dispatch to The Globe reports that on Tuesday, chief financial officer Aaron McKay said the collective agreement handed down by an arbitrator late last month brings its roughly 470 aviators up to industry standards. The deal includes a 26-per-cent pay hike in the first year and 5 per cent annually over the next four years, he said. The agreement -- retroactive to July 1 and expiring in 2031 -- marks a major expense. It raises flight crew costs to as much as $32-million per quarter, up from about $27-million currently, Mr. McKay confirmed. But it also includes productivity provisions that move aviators to a baseline of 16 working days per month, up from 15 before, as well as more training days. "It also gives us opportunities to be more price competitive with the American carriers that we constantly compete with," said founder and chairman Ajay Virmani. Cargojet's business hinges on air delivery of e-commerce goods via its fleet of 41 planes.