Dozens gather in downtown Montreal in support of Air Canada flight attendants
While Air Canada travellers wait, rebook, and make other arrangements as their flights remain in limbo, a crowd in downtown Montreal formed to support flight attendants who remain on the ground despite a federal back-to-work order.
Air Canada announced on Monday that it will suspend all flights through Tuesday afternoon after flight attendants still defied Prime Minister Mark Carney's order.
The airline's CEO told CTV News earlier in the day that he hoped Air Canada would resume services on Tuesday.
Around 200 protesters joined the multi-union Workers' Alliance in Phillips Square in downtown Montreal and marched to Air Canada's headquarters at Square Victoria.
'This illegal strike is necessary—it's the beginning of something,' said Workers' Alliance Montreal representative Emma Dowson. '[Premier Francois] Legault and Carney think they can break our leverage with laws and decrees, but power doesn't come from the Code. It comes from people, from anger. And what they're seeing now is only a taste of what awaits them if they keep pushing.'
Protesters in Montreal
People protest in support and solidarity with Air Canada flight attendants, in downtown Montreal, Monday, Aug. 18, 2025. Jobs Minister Patty Hajdu intervened in the labour dispute between the two parties, ordering binding arbitration and operations to resume. (Christopher Katsarov/The Canadian Press)
Several representatives made speeches at the gathering, including Syndicat des professionnelles et professionnels du Cégep de Saint-Laurent (CSN) president Philippe Soucy.
'Flight attendants are being repressed for simply demanding better living conditions,' he said. 'We are here, at their side, whatever our trade. This moment is historic, and it is our duty, as workers and union members, to fight alongside them.'
The flight attendants' union says that workers face 'unacceptable conditions' with a starting wage of $1,952 gross per month and dozens of hours of unpaid work.
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