Latest news with #CanadaUnionOfPublicEmployees
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Air Canada strike leads to canceled flights around L.A.
A strike by thousands of Air Canada flight attendants caused travel chaos and hundreds of flight cancellations across the country on Saturday, including 24 at Los Angeles International Airport and two at John Wayne Airport. The Canadian government quickly stepped in Saturday morning, shutting down the strike by imposing binding arbitration and forcing the flight attendants back to work. "It has now become clear that this dispute won't be resolved at the table," Canada's labor minister Patty Hajdu said in a statement, adding that the government must act to preserve stability and supply chains. The strike started about 10 p.m. Friday and was brought by the Canada Union of Public Employees, which represents roughly 10,000 flight attendants at Air Canada and Air Canada Rouge. The dispute was tied to contract negotiations over unpaid work and low wages, according to a statement from the union. Air Canada operates around 700 flights per day and started winding down operations two days ago in anticipation of the planned strike, at the time estimating it would affect about 130,000 customers. The airline said it would notify customers on canceled flights of their options, saying it deeply regrets the effect of the labor dispute. An independent industrial relations board will review the dispute over the next two days. According to Hajdu, it could take Air Canada five to 10 days to ramp back up to regular services. Canada is no stranger to air travel strikes. Last year, pilots for WestJet Airlines, the country's second-largest airline behind Air Canada, threatened to strike over a new contract. The same year, a plane mechanics union went on strike over wages, leading to hundreds of WestJet flight cancellations. Air travel strikes have popped up in the U.S. as well. Around 500 Spirit Airlines pilots went on strike for five days in 2010, leading to hundreds of flight cancellations. In 2023, LAX workers voted to authorize a strike over stalls in contract negotiations. Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Air Canada flight attendants walk off the job as strike begins
More than 10,000 Air Canada flight attendants went on strike as of 12:58 a.m. ET Saturday, after the airline and the union representing them failed to reach a deal ahead of the deadline. The Canada Union of Public Employees, or CUPE, gave a 72-hour strike notice on Wednesday after midnight. Air Canada responded shortly after by saying it would lock out workers, and began winding down operations on Thursday with a gradual suspension of flights. With a work stoppage now in effect, Air Canada estimates that 130,000 customers will be affected each day of a strike, a figure that includes 25,000 Canadian travellers who are abroad. The strike began after talks between CUPE and Air Canada reached an impasse, with wages and ground pay — which compensates flight attendants for work while the plane is grounded — among the key sticking points keeping the parties from reaching a deal. Earlier this week, Air Canada formally proposed to CUPE that the parties use binding arbitration to negotiate the renewal of a 10-year collective agreement that expired in March. CUPE declined to use arbitration, a process that would have an arbitrator render a decision about specific items the parties can't agree on. CUPE has maintained it wants to stay at the negotiating table and have the two sides come to an agreement themselves. Air Canada asked federal Jobs Minister Patty Hajdu to make a referral under Section 107 of the Canada Labour Code to send the negotiations to binding interest arbitration. Hajdu gave CUPE until noon on Friday to respond, and they declined. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
