I worked at Air Canada for over 7 years. Here's why this summer drove me to quit.

• This summer's chaos drove an Air Canada ramp agent who's worked at the airline for years to quit.
• He described a workplace plagued by understaffing, poor management, and frustrated workers.

This as-told-to essay is based on conversations with a supervisor-level Air Canada ramp agent who worked at the airline for more than seven years and recently put in his notice to leave the company at the end of August. He requested to remain anonymous due to Air Canada's media policy, but his employment has been verified by Insider with documentation. The following has been edited for length and clarity.

If I could describe my seven years at Air Canada, it was like a pot of boiling water that was just getting hotter and hotter until it started to overflow. That's where we're at this summer.

I was a supervisor-level ramp agent. I oversaw the crew in charge of the weight balance of the aircraft, so making sure the aircraft can take off and the weight's not too heavy on one side — as well as doing the basic inspections around the aircraft and loading and offloading cargo and passenger baggage. I was also responsible for safety issues.

I think a lot of the frustration ramp agents are feeling comes down to when you come into work and see 10 to 15 flights stacked back-to-back. Then throughout the day, there are delays, maintenance issues, and crew shortages, so flights get moved around. It's just madness. The only thing you know is it's either gonna be a really rough day or it's gonna be a rough day — and you're lucky if it's just a rough day.

We're understaffed and racing between back-to-back flights

On long shifts, you might have 15 to 17 flights back-to-back. When your crew is only made up of two other people and they're underqualified, there's no time to stop.

Five years ago, there was time for breaks. It was more organized, it wasn't as chaotic, and there were more workers — everyone was happier. Before, you had time to go get a glass of water if you were thirsty. Now, you don't even have time to do that.

It's not the fault of the employees, but many are not qualified, so oftentimes you're basically working the entire flight yourself. They don't know how to load an aircraft because they haven't been trained, so you essentially have one man or one woman loading an aircraft that carries 450 people alone.

We're slammed. Some days, we're out there for five to six hours with no breaks. A couple of weeks ago I worked a shift and didn't get a single break — no lunch or anything — for nine hours.

Air Canada is very short-staffed, and obviously I get it — that's something happening around the entire world right now. But they're setting people up to fail. Obviously, we can't be at two gates on different sides of the airport two minutes apart. I see employees break down all the time crying.

Management doesn't address our concerns

It's such an underappreciated job, but most of us truly care for the passengers and their experience. We want to make their trips great, but it feels like we're playing tug of war with the company itself.

I've personally sent off emails to the executives at the very top and invited them to come for a day to the airport and just watch my flights to see what's going on. They never answered.

They don't address small concerns, from something small, like if an employee doesn't have safety goggles, to something major. There's just no communication in that sense from management. You reach out and you get no response.

I warned multiple managers that if they keep working people like this, somebody's going to get hurt, and then the following day my guys get into an accident and their safety is put at risk. At the end of the day, nobody wants to come into a workplace where their safety is on the line or where their mental or physical health is being put at risk every day.

It felt like it was us and the passengers against the company

But the one thing I want passengers to know is that when they're frustrated with their bags not being delivered, or delays, or cancellations, were 1,000% behind them and on the same page. We want them to have a good experience, but it feels like it's us and the passengers against the company a lot of days.

There were people that had been with the airline longer than I had, and were halfway to a pension but they just quit. The best way I can describe it is if you go into a Walmart during peak hours and there's only one cashier.

The biggest attraction to working at Air Canada is being able to fly almost for free, but a lot of people can't travel right now because they're working nonstop.

It's never been this bad. They're working so much that on their days off they're basically recovering if not physically, then mentally. I know a lot of people are quitting and a lot of people have already quit.

I'm leaving Air Canada because the company is a mess right now and they have been for a while and they can't seem to figure it out. The employees are the ones that are taking the toll on the frontline, and it shouldn't be that way.

An Air Canada spokesperson did not respond to Insider's request for comment. The airline previously said it cannot respond to anonymous comments made by employees and that the "global air transport industry is currently challenged due to issues with airports and third-party providers of services including passenger screening, customs and air navigation."

"We are working hard with these industry partners and government to further stabilize and improve all aspects of the air transport ecosystem. Our employees are professionals who are working hard to take care of our customers," an Air Canada spokesperson previously told Insider.