Around 10,000 Air Canada flight attendants have rejected the wage offer put forward in a tentative contract deal. The vote, which wrapped up on Saturday, saw 99.1% of union members voting against the proposal.
Even though workers rejected the deal, there won’t be another strike. Air Canada and the union had already agreed that if the wage offer was turned down, the matter would go to mediation, and if needed, to arbitration. The airline said there will be no strike or lockout, and flights will keep running as usual.
“Air Canada and CUPE contemplated this potential outcome and mutually agreed that if the tentative agreement was not ratified, the wage portion would be referred to mediation and, if no agreement was reached at that stage, to arbitration,” the airline said in a statement.
Other terms of deal remain in place
According to the union, most other parts of the tentative agreement will still be included in a new collective contract with Air Canada, except for the wages, which remain under dispute.
This comes just weeks after Air Canada restarted operations on August 19 following a strike that disrupted the travel plans of hundreds of thousands of passengers. During the peak of summer, the strike had affected around 130,000 travellers per day before the union and airline reached a temporary deal.
Flight attendants went on strike
More than 10,000 Air Canada flight attendants went on strike in August, forcing the airline to stop all flights. This is the first strike by Air Canada flight attendants since 1985. The walkout comes during the busy summer travel season after contract talks between the airline and the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) broke down.
Canadian Union of Public Employees outrightly announced via a post on its website: “We are now officially on strike.”
CUPE said the strike is over long-standing problems such as fatigue, fair pay, and respect for frontline workers. Air Canada, on the other hand, said it regretted the uncertainty caused for both passengers and staff. The two sides have been negotiating for around eight months, but have still not reached a deal.
“About 130,000 customers will be impacted each day that the strike continues,” the airline said in a statement.