Air Canada to gradually cancel flights ahead of looming strike
Canadians with Air Canada flights booked this week may want to consider alternative travel options ahead of the looming strike.
The airline has issued a 72-hour lockout notice to the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) after it provided notice that it intends to begin a strike as early as Saturday, Aug. 16. The union represents 10,000 flight attendants at Air Canada and Air Canada Rouge, which carry approximately 130,000 customers a day who could be affected by a labour disruption.
“To provide customers certainty, Air Canada will begin a phased wind-down of most of its operations to be completed over the next three days,” reads the announcement on Wednesday. “The airline has also sought government-directed arbitration to resolve the situation.”
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The Air Canada Component of CUPE issued its 72-hour strike notice on Wednesday, claiming that the carrier “refused to recognize that flight attendants should be paid for all their time on the job.”
“For the past nine months, we have put forward solid, data-driven proposals on wages and unpaid work, all rooted in fairness and industry standards,” said Wesley Lesosky, president of the Air Canada Component of CUPE. “Air Canada’s response to our proposals makes one thing clear: they are not interested in resolving these critical issues.”
The airline argues that there have been eight months of “good faith negotiations” that included the assistance of federal conciliators, and an offer to enter binding arbitration.
Air Canada added that it tabled a revised comprehensive proposal to the union on Aug. 11, which sought no concessions in return from its flight attendants and provided for a 38 per cent total compensation increase over four years. The offer also addressed the issue of ground pay, improved pensions and benefits, increased crew rest and other improvements.
“The disappointing conduct of CUPE’s negotiators and the union’s stated intention to launch a strike puts us in a position where our only responsible course of action is to provide certainty by implementing an orderly suspension of Air Canada’s and Air Canada Rouge’s operations through a lockout,” said Michael Rousseau, president and chief executive of Air Canada.
“As we have seen elsewhere in our industry with other labour disruptions, unplanned or uncontrolled shutdowns, such as we are now at risk of through a strike, can create chaos for travellers that is far, far worse.”
The carrier says Air Canada Express flights operated by Jazz and PAL Airlines will continue to operate as normal.
If you think you’ll be affected by these pre-emptive flight cancellations, check out your options.