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Edmonton Journal

Air Canada flight attendants defy back-to-work order, continue strike

Article content Oci Mara and her husband were supposed to fly home to Montreal at around 1 a.m. Monday, but their flights were cancelled due to the strike. Unable to get through by phone, they went to the airport to speak with Air Canada agents in person. Article content 'It's a terrible situation. It's so frustrating,' Mara said, adding that her husband needs to be back in Montreal for work on Monday. Article content Mara said they were told that if they booked seats with another airline, Air Canada would only refund the cost of their original tickets. Article content 'We have no idea what we're going to do,' she said. Article content While she sympathizes with flight attendants fighting for fair pay, Mara said the strike has left passengers struggling to make alternate travel arrangements. Article content 'I understand people have to fight for their rights to get paid,' she said. 'Unfortunately, there's a lot of problems for us (as a result).' Article content Article content Air Canada said it will provide travellers with cancelled flights options such as full refunds or credit for future travel. 'The carrier will also offer to rebook customers on other carriers, although capacity is currently limited due to the peak summer travel season,' the airline said in a statement. Article content Article content Flight attendants spent Saturday picketing at the Calgary International Airport, where travellers continued their efforts to salvage travel plans disrupted by the work stoppage. Article content Air Canada, which locked out its flight attendants shortly after their strike began, had planned for flights to resume Sunday evening with a gradual ramp-up over the coming days, the Montreal-based airline said in a statement. Whenever service restarts, it will take several days before operations return to normal. Article content Article content The airline previously said the walkout would disrupt some 130,000 passengers a day during the summer holiday season. Article content The Canada Industrial Relations Board directed Air Canada to resume airline operations and for all Air Canada and Air Canada Rouge flight attendants to return to work by 2 p.m. ET, according to the airline's statement early Sunday. Article content The move came after Jobs Minister Patty Hajdu directed the independent CIRB to order a resumption of operations and to impose binding arbitration to resolve a standoff over contract negotiations. Article content The Liberal government's back-to-work order was criticized by the government's political opponents on Saturday. Article content Federal Conservative Labour critic Kyle Seeback called the move an attack on flight attendants. Article content 'No worker — federally regulated or otherwise — should be forced, especially by the government, to work without being paid. Yet, that is exactly what flight attendants are being ordered to do,' he said in a written statement, while urging the federal Liberals to pass a Conservative-sponsored bill that would ensure flight attendants are paid for all hours worked. Article content Meanwhile, Alberta NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi said the Air Canada labour dispute should be resolved at the negotiating table.