Air Canada's flight attendants' union has reached an impasse with its employer, citing a disagreement on fair compensation as its top issue.
The Air Canada Component of CUPE represents 10,000 flight attendants at Air Canada and Air Canada Rouge. Its members are now in a legal position to strike following the expiration of their collective agreement with the airline on March 31, 2025.
A spokesperson for the union told V.I.A. in an April interview that the current contract remains in place while it negotiates with its employer. At that time, the union hoped a deal could be reached without government intervention, to negotiate a "strong new contract" instead of taking job action.
However, talks broke down this week, with Air Canada Component of CUPE President Wesley Lesosky announcing Wednesday, May 14, that Air Canada "appears to be dragging their feet and not taking the process seriously."
"The status quo won't cut it."
Lesosky said the union has made "fair, reasonable, and long overdue proposals," but employee conditions continue to worsen without appropriate acknowledgement.
The union is filing for conciliation with the federal Minister of Labour. Once the federal conciliation officer is appointed, they will work with the parties for 60 days. After this period, the parties enter a mandatory 21-day cooling-off period. If no agreement is reached after this, the union may issue a 72-hour strike notice after a vote is taken. The current timeline means a strike is possible for the summer, in early August at the earliest.
According to the union, entry-level Air Canada flight attendants working full-time only earn $1,951.30 monthly, which it says "is impossible to live on."
Lesosky adds that "everything has changed" since the union's original contract was written in 2015 and "the status quo won't cut it."
Air Canada flight attendants highlight several issues with the contract
The flight attendants' union has been bargaining with Air Canada over several key issues for several months, focusing mainly on fair payment and working conditions. It has been locked into a 10-year deal with the airline, meaning members haven't seen wage increases commensurate with changes to their workload.
The cost of living has increased over the past decade, and flight attendants have additional duties following the pandemic.
Lesosky told V.I.A. that some of a flight attendant's most important and complex duties are performed in uniform, for free. Pre-flight activities, including identifying aircraft needs (such as de-icing or propeller abnormalities), safety checks (checking extinguishers, smoke hoods, and more), and ensuring that services are ready for passengers, including the laboratories and catering equipment, are completed without pay.
CUPE's airline division, which represents approximately 18,500 flight attendants across Canada, launched a campaign highlighting these issues facing flight attendants in Canada. The "Unpaid Work Won't Fly" campaign states that employees work roughly 35 hours for free monthly.
Find more information about exciting destinations in B.C. and across the globe, as well as travel deals and tips, by signing up for V.I.A.'s weekly travel newsletter The Wanderer. Since travel deals can sell out, find out the day they are posted by signing up for our daily Travel Deals newsletter.
Want to learn more about a specific destination or have a travel concern or idea you would like V.I.A. to write about? Email us at [email protected]. Send us stories about recent holidays that you've been on, or if you have any tips you think our readers should know about.
