SAEDNEWS: More than 10,000 flight attendants at Air Canada have gone on strike after negotiations between the airline and their union broke down, leaving thousands of passengers stranded at the height of the summer travel season.
The Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), which represents the workers, confirmed the strike began early Saturday after a deadline passed without an agreement. “The strike has started after no deal was reached,” CUPE spokesman Hugh Pouliot said.
Air Canada, the country’s largest airline, announced that all flights would be canceled for the duration of the work stoppage. More than 620 flights had already been grounded by Saturday morning, with the carrier estimating that 130,000 passengers could be affected daily — including 25,000 Canadians currently overseas.
The dispute centers on wages and ground pay, which compensates flight attendants while aircraft are on the ground. CUPE rejected Air Canada’s request to submit the case to government-directed arbitration, which would have removed the union’s right to strike and handed the decision to a third-party mediator.
The airline had asked Labour Minister Patty Hajdu to intervene under Section 107 of the Canada Labour Code, pushing for binding arbitration. Hajdu gave CUPE until noon Friday to respond, but the union refused, insisting on continuing direct negotiations.
Air Canada had already begun winding down operations on Thursday after CUPE issued a 72-hour strike notice earlier in the week. The walkout marks the escalation of a bitter contract fight following the expiry of a decade-long collective agreement in March.
