Air Canada and the union representing 10,000 striking flight attendants resumed talks late Monday in Toronto, marking their first meeting since crews walked off the job over the weekend in a dispute over pay and unpaid work. The strike has entered its fourth day, resulting in the cancellation of 700 daily flights and leaving around 130,000 travelers stranded at the peak of the summer season.
The Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) said discussions began with mediator William Kaplan but vowed that flight attendants would not return to work until Air Canada addresses wages and ground duties, such as boarding passengers, for which they are currently not paid. Currently, flight attendants are only paid when they are flying.
Air Canada’s unionized flight attendants walked off the job on Saturday after contract talks collapsed. The Canada Industrial Relations Board has deemed the strike unlawful. Air Canada’s chief executive, Michael Rousseau, defended the airline’s offer of a 38% compensation increase over four years, acknowledging that there was a “big gap” with union demands.
“Why are we so interested in them (our passengers)? Because it’s their job and it’s our job to make sure our passengers are treated well.”
Canadian Jobs Minister Patty Hajdu called for negotiations and a quick labor deal, increasing pressure on Air Canada by announcing a probe into airline pay. With the union refusing the federal labor board’s order to return to work, the issue has evolved into a three-way standoff among the airline, workers, and the government.
Prime Minister Mark Carney urged both sides to quickly resolve the dispute, stating that hundreds of thousands of passengers are being “disrupted by this action.” Air Canada said that rolling cancellations would now extend into Tuesday afternoon. The airline had canceled more than 2,500 flights and saw its shares fall nearly 3% since Thursday.
Source: https://www.dw.com/en/air-canada-union-resume-talks-as-strike-disrupts-travel/a-73686855?maca=en-rss-en-all-1573-rdf
