MONTREAL – Air Canada is cutting about 400 management jobs two months after a strike wreaked havoc on its finances.
“Following an extensive review, we made the difficult decision to reduce some non-unionized management positions, affecting one per cent of our total staff,” spokeswoman Angela Mah said in an email.
The cuts will not affect day-to-day operations at the country’s biggest airline, she said.
The move comes after a three-day strike by more than 10,000 flight attendants in August shut down operations and caused more than 3,000 flight cancellations.
The labour dispute cost Air Canada $375 million, prompting it to lower its adjusted earnings forecast for the year by about that amount to $3 billion, the company said in its third-quarter financial results.
Customer refunds and compensation as well as lower bookings in August and September made up the bulk of the financial hit.
Last month, flight attendants overwhelmingly rejected Air Canada’s wage offer, which included raises and a pay structure for time worked when planes are on the ground. The matter has been referred to mediation.
Air Canada sought to portray the job cuts this week as a result of routine streamlining.
“As a global company, Air Canada regularly reviews its resources and processes to ensure they are optimized to efficiently support business operations and its customers,” Mah said.
The staff reduction also arrives as the carrier plans to launch flights to the U.S. out of Toronto’s island airport in a bid for business passengers that marks a direct challenge to rival Porter Airlines.
Air Canada announced Thursday it will fly planes between Billy Bishop airport and New York City, Chicago, Boston and Washington, D.C., starting next spring.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 24, 2025.
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