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Vancouver Sun
21-05-2025
- Business
- Vancouver Sun
Air Canada flight attendants contract: Here's what you need to know
The union representing 10,400 Air Canada flight attendants and the company will soon sit down with a conciliator to try to work out a new contract. But if they fail, the airline could be hit with a strike in mid-August. CUPE, which represents the flight attendants, filed for conciliation last week after contract talks broke down. The contract between Air Canada and CUPE members, which had been in effect for 10 years, expired in March. 'Everything has changed since 2015, but the company refuses to acknowledge reality,' Wesley Lesosky, CUPE air component president and a veteran flight attendant, said in a statement. Stay on top of the latest real estate news and home design trends. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder. The next issue of Westcoast Homes will soon be in your inbox. Please try again Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. 'We've made fair, reasonable, and long overdue proposals, but the company appears to be dragging their feet and not taking the process seriously.' Now that CUPE has filed for conciliation, the two sides wait for a federal conciliator to be appointed, which can take up to 15 days. Once there's a conciliator, negotiations will continue for up to 60 days. If no agreement is reached by then, there is a 21-day cooling-off period, after which CUPE could serve 72-hour strike notice. 'Air Canada will work with the federal mediation and conciliation service to achieve a new collective agreement with our flight attendant group that recognizes our flight attendants' valued contributions,' the carrier said by email. 'Air Canada has a long history of successful labour relations and fruitful negotiations with its employees, as has again been demonstrated in the recent past.' The company settled a labour dispute with pilots in September after strike notice was served. According to the union, entry level pay for a flight attendant is about $1,950 a month. Fight attendants are based in Vancouver, Toronto, Calgary and Montreal, according to Air Canada. CUPE wants flight attendants to be paid from the time they start setting up for pre-boarding. Currently flight attendants are only paid while planes are in motion, from the time it backs away from the gate to the time it lands and parks at another gate. They are not reimbursed for assisting people who have mobility problems, running the boarding process, helping with deplaning, or even pre-flight safety checks, work the union estimates comes out to an average of 35 hours a week for which the average flight attendants is not paid. CUPE began an Unpaid Work Won't Fly campaign in April, 2023, lobbying Ottawa to close the loophole in the Labour Code that allows such unpaid work, so far with no success. The union has also proposed scheduling changes, safety and fatigue provisions, and retirement security. 'Our workloads have soared, the cost of living has skyrocketed beyond belief, and our working conditions are getting worse by the day,' Lesosky said. 'The status quo won't cut it.' Air Canada said in a statement that the airline has worked hard and in good faith to reach a new collective agreement since the start of 2025. 'Air Canada remains committed to achieving a fair, negotiated agreement with CUPE under the normal bargaining process set out under the Canada Labour Code,' the company said. 'For this reason, customers can continue to book and travel with confidence on Air Canada.' If conciliation were to begin on Monday, May 26, and no agreement is reached, the union could serve strike notice on Aug. 14 and walk out on Aug. 17. 'I am really hopeful that Air Canada flight attendants reach a deal with the airline,' Claire Newell , owner of Travel Best Bets, said. 'The last thing an airline wants to do is cancel flights. If a strike happens it will likely be just for a few days, Newell said. 'However, in that time there can be a huge number of passengers affected.' The airline says no. 'The federally mandated conciliation process will occur over the coming months, so customers can continue to book and travel on Air Canada with full confidence.' Newell said that if a passenger changes their booking in any way — by rebooking their ticket or if they seek a refund — before Air Canada cancels their flight due to a labour situation, they are at Air Canada's mercy and subject to all of the airlines policies, terms and conditions. 'However, if they wait it out, the airline will notify affected passengers if a flight is cancelled, and the passengers will be eligible for a full refund regardless of the fare purchased,' she said. 'No cancellation fees will apply.' Under the Air Passenger Protection Regulations, a labour disruption is considered outside of Air Canada's control, and passengers are not compensated with cash for inconvenience. The airline will try to re-book passengers on different flights, but in Newell's experience, very few passengers are offered alternative flights because space is limited. 'I have seen people who absolutely must be somewhere book Plan B flights on a different airline that are fully refundable just in case their flights are affected by a strike, although I know not everyone has that option available to them.' gordmcintyre@
Business Wire
14-05-2025
- Business
- Business Wire
CUPE : Air Canada flight attendant union forced to file for conciliation in fight for fairness
TORONTO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Air Canada Component of CUPE, the union representing 10,000 flight attendants at Air Canada and Air Canada Rouge, has filed for conciliation with the federal minister of labour, citing an impasse with the airline. "We've made fair, reasonable, and long overdue proposals, but the company appears to be dragging their feet and not taking the process seriously," said Wesley Lesosky, a flight attendant with 24 years experience and President of the Air Canada Component of CUPE. The contract, which has been in effect since 2015, expired on March 31, 2025. "Everything has changed since 2015, but the company refuses to acknowledge reality," said Lesosky. "Our workloads have soared, the cost of living has skyrocketed beyond belief, and our working conditions are getting worse by the day. The status quo won't cut it." The top issue for flight attendants is fair compensation. The union is negotiating to put an end to unpaid work, which it has been addressing through its Unfair Canada campaign since December 2024. Flight attendants at Air Canada are struggling to get by. An entry-level flight attendant at Air Canada who works full-time is only earning $1,951.30 per month, which is impossible to live on. The union has also put forward reasonable proposals to improve scheduling and safety and fatigue provisions, retirement security, and working conditions, among others. Since April 2023, with its Unpaid Work Won't Fly campaign, CUPE has been lobbying the federal government to close loopholes in the Canada Labour Code that allow airlines to force flight attendants to work 35 hours per month, on average, without pay. Unpaid duties typically include boarding and deplaning aircraft, assisting passengers with mobility issues, and performing critical pre-flight safety checks. The Liberals have refused to acknowledge the issue or take action to date. Once a federal conciliation officer is appointed, they will have up to sixty days to work with the parties. At the end of the conciliation period, the parties enter a mandatory 21-day cooling off period. If no agreement is reached by the end of the 21-day cooling off period, the union may give 72-hours notice of job action after a strike vote has been taken.
Associated Press
14-05-2025
- Business
- Associated Press
CUPE : Air Canada flight attendant union forced to file for conciliation in fight for fairness
TORONTO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 14, 2025-- The Air Canada Component of CUPE, the union representing 10,000 flight attendants at Air Canada and Air Canada Rouge, has filed for conciliation with the federal minister of labour, citing an impasse with the airline. 'We've made fair, reasonable, and long overdue proposals, but the company appears to be dragging their feet and not taking the process seriously,' said Wesley Lesosky, a flight attendant with 24 years experience and President of the Air Canada Component of CUPE. The contract, which has been in effect since 2015, expired on March 31, 2025. 'Everything has changed since 2015, but the company refuses to acknowledge reality,' said Lesosky. 'Our workloads have soared, the cost of living has skyrocketed beyond belief, and our working conditions are getting worse by the day. The status quo won't cut it.' The top issue for flight attendants is fair compensation. The union is negotiating to put an end to unpaid work, which it has been addressing through its Unfair Canada campaign since December 2024. Flight attendants at Air Canada are struggling to get by. An entry-level flight attendant at Air Canada who works full-time is only earning $1,951.30 per month, which is impossible to live on. The union has also put forward reasonable proposals to improve scheduling and safety and fatigue provisions, retirement security, and working conditions, among others. Since April 2023, with its Unpaid Work Won't Fly campaign, CUPE has been lobbying the federal government to close loopholes in the Canada Labour Code that allow airlines to force flight attendants to work 35 hours per month, on average, without pay. Unpaid duties typically include boarding and deplaning aircraft, assisting passengers with mobility issues, and performing critical pre-flight safety checks. The Liberals have refused to acknowledge the issue or take action to date. Once a federal conciliation officer is appointed, they will have up to sixty days to work with the parties. At the end of the conciliation period, the parties enter a mandatory 21-day cooling off period. If no agreement is reached by the end of the 21-day cooling off period, the union may give 72-hours notice of job action after a strike vote has been taken. View source version on CONTACT: Hugh Pouliot CUPE Communications 613-818-0067 [email protected] KEYWORD: NORTH AMERICA CANADA INDUSTRY KEYWORD: PUBLIC POLICY/GOVERNMENT LABOR AIR TRANSPORT SOURCE: CUPE Copyright Business Wire 2025. PUB: 05/14/2025 09:22 AM/DISC: 05/14/2025 09:21 AM
