The union representing more than 10,000 Air Canada flight attendants has rejected the airline’s proposal to move contract negotiations to arbitration, as it heads toward a potential strike as early as Saturday.
Aug. 16 is the earliest date that flight attendants represented by the Air Canada component of the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) would be in a legal strike position.
They can serve a 72-hour strike notice at any time, but would need to do so by the end of the day Tuesday if they intend to walk off the job at 12:01 a.m. on Saturday.
In a post on CUPE’s website on Tuesday, the union said “Air Canada and Air Canada Rouge have decided they no longer want to negotiate,” and have issued a letter urging the union to agree to arbitration rather than bargaining.
Air Canada’s letter stated it now proposes using interest arbitration to “move forward without further delay and uncertainty,” given the two sides have been unable to reach a tentative agreement after eight months of bargaining.
CUPE has turned down the proposal, saying Air Canada flight attendants want to end the practice of not being paid for time spent on the ground, while the airline wants an arbitrator — who relies on precedent — to “do their dirty work for them to keep the status quo intact.”
“Air Canada wants to go to arbitration because they want to take away our members’ democratic voice and close this deal to their liking, and not with the mutual consent of the membership,” the union added.
The union said the airline has communicated that they “are too far apart.”
About 700 Air Canada flight attendants held a “national day of action” at Toronto Pearson airport on Monday over what they called “poverty-level wages,” with simultaneous demonstrations taking place at other major Canadian airports.
Negotiations have been ongoing since the beginning of the year, as the 10-year contract expired in March. On Aug. 5, CUPE members voted 99.7 per cent in favour of a strike mandate.
Travel and labour experts have told the Star that a work stoppage would ground Air Canada flights, but the airline could pressure Ottawa to impose a back-to-work order.
If travellers face a flight cancellation, Air Canada would be legally responsible for finding alternative transportation for passengers within 48 hours of their original itinerary — a task experts say could be difficult during the peak summer season.
