Air Transat offered a ray of hope Monday that parka-puffed Canadians may still be able to fly off somewhere sunny in the coming days, saying “progress” was made during overnight negotiations with the union representing its pilots.
In a statement released Monday afternoon, Air Transat said “negotiations with the union representing our pilots continued throughout the night and we have made progress.”
No details on that progress were released.
“Discussions are also ongoing today,” the airline added. “We are working tirelessly and still hope to reach an agreement during the day to minimize disruptions to operations.”
It also said the ball was now in the union’s court.
“We aim to find a reasonable consensus, and it is now up to the union to move towards us, considering the generous offer we have put forward. As soon as we have updates, you will be informed.”
Meanwhile, the Air Line Pilots Association, which represents 750 pilots at Air Transat, issued a 72-hour strike notice over the weekend, saying in a release on Sunday: “There is still time to avoid a strike but unless significant progress is made at the bargaining table, we will strike if that’s what it takes to achieve a modern contract.”
According to the strike notice, job action could begin as early as 3:00 a.m. ET on Wednesday.
Travel company Transat A.T. Inc., which owns the carrier, has already warned that cancellations would ramp up ahead of that deadline, but so far no flights have been called off.
Air Transat confirmed that all flights scheduled on Sunday operated as planned, and says “for now” all of Monday’s flights are proceeding.
But for those already at a destination, the airline said it was launching a special program to bring back as many travellers as possible to avoid them being stuck in a bind.
That program got underway today, it said.
“Some travelers who were scheduled to return on December 10 will return today thanks to four additional flights,” it added.
“We are communicating directly with affected passengers to provide all necessary information and facilitate their return.”
Air Transat added that “these measures could change quickly if a tentative agreement is reached with the union.”
The union is seeking better wages, quality of life, and job security, for its workers.
The Canadian airline headquartered in Montreal operates scheduled and charter flights serving 60 destinations in 25 countries.
In a recent interview with CityNews, Gábor Lukács, president of Air Passenger Rights, offered would-be travellers advice on how to protect themselves in light of the precarious situation.
“Passengers need to know that there is a significant difference between your flight being cancelled pre-emptively in anticipation of a strike while the labour force is still there, such cancellations are within the carriers’ control, and cancellations during a strike once the workers have walked off the job, which are deemed under Canada’s backward, inferior air passenger protection regulations to be outside the carriers’ control, like a snowstorm.
“For pre-emptive cancellations, the airline has to pay compensation to passengers up to $1,000 per passenger and has to rebook them on their own or partner airlines. And if that is not possible, then they have to buy the passenger a ticket on a competitor airline.
He notes that in situations outside a carriers’ control “there is no lump-sum compensation, no meals and accommodation are owed which would be owed in a pre-emptive cancellation case and the airline’s obligation is to rebook the passengers on their own or partner airlines to depart within 48 hours, or else to rebook the passenger on the next available flight of any carrier, including competitors.”
With files from The Canadian Press
