Subhead:Air Canada flight attendants voted 99.7% yesterday in favour of a strike mandate, should collective bargaining fail. They threatened strike action for August 16.#
Air Canada flight attendants are set to resume negotiations this week with renewed urgency after voting to strike if talks fail. This follows a 99.7% strike mandate vote yesterday by its CUPE component, representing 10,000 flight attendants.
“We’ve been … negotiating since December,” CUPE Air Canada component vice-president Theresa Mitchell told CTV News Wednesday. Discussions regarding wages, unpaid labour, and working conditions remain stalled.
“We are ready … and willing to work,” Mitchell added, noting CUPE and the employer remain divided on key issues.
Among the demands from the union is the discontinuation of the long-standing practice of not compensating flight attendants for duties including boarding, deplaning, and pre-flight safety inspections.
Flight attendants are only paid once doors close and the plane moves, despite federal labour standards. CUPE reports unpaid labour also includes medical and safety emergencies.
“This is an antiquated pay system,” Mitchell said. “We want that to end.”
