The federal government has ordered binding arbitration to end a strike by Air Canada flight attendants, citing mounting economic and travel disruptions, a move the union says tramples workers’ rights.
The walkout by more than 10,000 members of the Canadian Union of Public Employees began early Saturday morning, prompting the airline to phase out much of its flight schedule. By mid-day, Labour Minister Patty Hajdu announced she was invoking section 107 of the Canada Labour Code to refer the dispute to the Canada Industrial Relations Board for arbitration.
“After eight months of negotiations by the parties, and after meeting with both parties last night and urging them to work hard to reach a deal, it is disappointing to have to conclude today that Air Canada and CUPE flight attendants are at an impasse,” Hajdu said in a statement.
She said the strike was already having “an enormous impact” on travellers, supply chains, and the economy, adding that “this is not the time to add additional challenges and disruptions to their lives and our economy.”
The minister said arbitration would help ensure “hundreds of thousands of Canadians and visitors” are not stranded by cancelled flights and that shipments of critical goods, including pharmaceuticals and organ tissue, continue to move.
CUPE denounced the government’s decision, accusing Prime Minister Mark Carney’s Liberals of siding with the airline.
“The Liberal government under Mark Carney has done incalculable damage to the Charter and workers’ rights by siding with Air Canada to crush the rights of flight attendants,” the union said in a statement.
CUPE national president Mark Hancock said the fight would continue despite the order. “We will continue to fight on the picket lines, on the streets, at the bargaining table, in the courts, and in Parliament, until the injustice of unpaid work is done for good. Workers will win – despite the best effort of the Liberal government and their corporate friends.”
Candace Rennick, the union’s national secretary-treasurer, called the decision “absolutely shameful and a blatant betrayal.”
“The government’s decision to intervene on behalf of an already wildly profitable employer, while a predominantly female workforce fights tooth and nail for a path out of poverty, is not just unjust, it’s a disgraceful misuse of power that reeks of systemic bias and corporate favoritism,” she said.
Earlier in the day, Air Canada said it had begun cancelling flights and winding down operations to manage the strike’s impact.
“To complete the safe wind-down of our complex operations, we began a phased reduction of most of our flight schedule over the past two days,” the company said in a statement.
The airline said affected travellers could rebook without charge, request a refund, or use credits for future travel. Flights operated by its regional partners Jazz and PAL Airlines continue to run.
Air Canada acknowledged capacity to rebook passengers was limited during the busy summer season, but said it would “notify customers of any impact to their flight itinerary in advance.”
The dispute centres in part on CUPE’s demand to end unpaid work and low starting wages, which the union says leave many flight attendants in poverty despite the airline posting strong profits.
While Hajdu said the arbitration process would extend terms of the existing collective agreement until a new one is determined, CUPE warned the underlying issues will continue to resurface.
“This will only ensure that the unresolved issues will continue to worsen by kicking them down the road,” the union said.
