Air traffic More strikes at Air Canada
The labor dispute at Canada's largest airline, Air Canada, is to continue despite the ruling of an arbitration tribunal. Air Canada then postponed the planned resumption of flight operations.
18.08.2025, 09:01
SDA
According to the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), the strike will continue until their demands are met.
Air traffic was supposed to resume gradually from Sunday evening. Previously, the Canada Industrial Relations Board (CIRB), which is responsible for union matters, had called on the flight attendants of Air Canada and its low-cost subsidiary Air Canada Rouge to return to work. However, CUPE called on its members to oppose the order.
Almost all connections canceled
The approximately 10,000 flight attendants at Air Canada and Air Canada Rouge walked off the job on Saturday night. The airlines canceled almost all flights over the weekend. Air Canada is Canada's largest airline, offering direct flights to 180 cities worldwide and carrying around 130,000 passengers a day.
Concerned about the economic consequences of the strike in already difficult times due to the trade conflict with the USA, the government in Ottawa intervened and ordered binding arbitration on Saturday. The CIRB then ordered an end to the strike.
Annual salary of the equivalent of 51,000 francs rejected
CUPE sharply criticized this. "We call on Air Canada to return to the negotiating table to reach a fair agreement instead of relying on the government to do their dirty work for them," the union stated. The unionists also accused CIRB arbitrator Maryse Tremblay of a conflict of interest because she had previously worked for Air Canada.
CUPE had rejected the airline's latest offer on Thursday. Air Canada had proposed an increase in the average annual salary of a senior flight attendant to 87,000 Canadian dollars (51,000 Swiss francs) by 2027. This does not even compensate for inflation, the union criticized.
