The union representing more than 10,000 flight attendants has reached a tentative agreement with Air Canada, ending the strike action that disrupted travel for hundreds of thousands of Canadians.
The airline said Tuesday morning that it will begin resuming the operations of Air Canada and Air Canada Rouge, with the first flights scheduled for the evening.
It noted that, due to the complexity it takes to restart a major carrier, a full return to regular service could take a week or longer.
“During this process, some flights will be cancelled over the next seven to ten days until the schedule is stabilized,” Air Canada said in its public statement.
The air component of the Canadian Union of Public Employees said it has achieved “a transformational change for our industry” through the overnight mediated talk with the airline that ended at 4:23 a.m. Tuesday.
“Unpaid work is over. We have reclaimed our voice and our power,” CUPE wrote on its website.
The terms of the tentative agreement remain undisclosed pending a ratification vote by the flight attendants.
The federal government intervened in the strike on Saturday morning, invoking Section 107 of the Labour Code to force the Montreal-based airline and the union into binding arbitration.
That order was defied by union officials, leading the Canada Industrial Relations Board to state Monday that the strike was unlawful even as the union said it would press ahead.
Air Canada said on Tuesday it will offer options to those with cancelled flights, including a full refund or receiving a credit for future travel. It will also offer to rebook customers on other airlines where possible.
“Only customers with confirmed bookings whose flights are shown as operating should go to the airport,” the airline said.
With files from the Star wires services
