Latest news with #backtowork
National Post
21 hours ago
- Business
- National Post
CUPE sues government to block 'unconstitutional' power used to end flight attendant strike
Air Canada flight attendants picket outside of Terminal 1 at Toronto Pearson International Airport on Monday August 18, 2025. Photo by Ernest Doroszuk / Ernest Doroszuk/Toronto Sun/Post OTTAWA — Canada's largest union is suing the federal government to stop it from ever again invoking the controversial legal tool the Liberals used to order striking Air Canada flight attendants back to work. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS Enjoy the latest local, national and international news. Exclusive articles by Conrad Black, Barbara Kay and others. Plus, special edition NP Platformed and First Reading newsletters and virtual events. Unlimited online access to National Post. National Post ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. Support local journalism. SUBSCRIBE FOR MORE ARTICLES Enjoy the latest local, national and international news. Exclusive articles by Conrad Black, Barbara Kay and others. Plus, special edition NP Platformed and First Reading newsletters and virtual events. Unlimited online access to National Post. National Post ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. Support local journalism. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors In a lawsuit filed on Monday, the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) — which represents over 750,000 members including Air Canada flight attendants — laid bare its outrage towards the airline and the Liberal government. The union accused Jobs Minister Patty Hajdu of disregarding, undermining and nullifying the flight attendants' constitutional right to strike by invoking section 107 of the Canada Labour Code to order an end to the strike. The lawsuit asks a Federal Court judge to quash the minister's decision and declare that the power she invoked is both unconstitutional and exceeds her jurisdiction. In the meantime, CUPE is also seeking an emergency injunction against Hajdu's order. 'In issuing her direction, the Minister overrode, abrogated and effectively precluded the Union's ability to exercise its legal right to strike and its only legal means of asserting and leveraging economic power within the scheme of the Canada Labour Code,' CUPE argued in the lawsuit obtained by National Post. 'The Minister erred in law, inappropriately exercised her jurisdiction, authority and/or discretion, based her decision on erroneous findings of fact that she made in an arbitrary and abusive manner and/or issued an unreasonable decision' when she issued her order on Saturday, CUPE added. The federal government has not yet filed a response to the lawsuit. A spokesperson for Employment and Social Development Canada did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The controversial section says the minister can direct the Canadian Industrial Relations Board (CIRB) to do what she deems necessary to 'maintain or secure industrial peace' or create favourable conditions for a deal during labour disputes. In recent years, the Liberals have taken that to mean that they can order the tribunal to declare a strike illegal, compel federally regulated employees back to work or mandate binding arbitration between parties. Since 2024, they've invoked the power to end numerous port and railway strikes as well as a work stoppage at Canada Post in December. On Saturday, barely hours after flight attendants went on strike and hundreds of Air Canada flights were cancelled, the Liberals again invoked section 107 to demand the CIRB order strikers back to work and parties enter binding arbitration.
CBC
2 days ago
- Politics
- CBC
Section 107 and the Air Canada strike, explained
The federal government invoked Section 107 of the Canada Labour Code to end the Air Canada flight attendants' strike, but workers are defying the back-to-work order. CBC's Avneet Dhillon explains the controversial labour law.
CTV News
2 days ago
- Business
- CTV News
CTV National News: Air Canada flight attendant strike continues amid job action deemed as illegal
The union representing Air Canada's flight attendants has stood firm, defying a back-to-work order by the federal government. Heather Wright has the details.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Air Canada flight attendant union refuses to end 'unlawful' strike
The union representing Air Canada flight attendants says it will continue to defy a back-to-work order despite the Canada Industrial Relations Board ruling their strike "unlawful". The independent federal tribunal deemed the job action by the cabin crews - now in its third day - illegal on Monday after the union defied a government back-to-work order issued over the weekend. "If Air Canada thinks planes will be flying this afternoon, they're sorely mistaken," said Canadian Union of Public Employees president Mark Hancock. The strike by more than 10,000 flight attendants for Canada's largest airline has stranded tens of thousands of passengers since flights were grounded on Saturday. Air Canada has not yet responded to the union's latest move. The airline said earlier that it planned to resume flights by Monday evening, but a notice on its website as of Monday afternoon said its operations "remain suspended". The Canada Industrial Relations Board decision ordered the union to send its members back to work by 12:00 EST (16:00GMT) on Monday, and also directed the members to return to their duties. It is unclear what consequences the CUPE now faces for its defiance. At a news conference, Mr Hancock said the union is willing to accept any penalties for its refusal to comply, including monetary fines and jail time. "If it means folks like me going to jail, then so be it," he told reporters, adding that the union will only accept to resolve this through a negotiated settlement at the bargaining table. Under Canadian law, the union and individual workers could be fined or sanctioned for refusing to return to work, Western University law professor Michael Lynk told Reuters. Prime Minister Mark Carney said it was "disappointing" that Air Canada and its cabin crew were unable to reach an agreement after eight months of negotiations. "We are in a situation where literally hundreds of thousands of Canadians and visitors to our country are being disrupted by this action," Carney said in Ottawa on Monday. "I urge both parties to resolve this as quickly as possible." The airline estimates some 500,000 passengers have so far been affected by flight cancellations. What to know as Air Canada strike continues Stranded passenger Jenny Phelps told Reuters she struggled to reach the airline while trying to rebook her cancelled flights. She said that, while she supports the strike action by the flight crews, she's on the hook for three extra hotel nights and called the experience "super stressful and very expensive". In their remarks on Monday, union representatives apologised for the impact the job action has had on travellers across Canada. "Our fight is not with you. We do not want to be here," said Candace Rennick, the union's national secretary-treasurer. "But these workers who are mostly women have waited too long to have their issues addressed." Flight attendants are calling for higher salaries and to be paid for work when aircraft are on the ground. In contract negotiations, Air Canada said it had offered flight attendants a 38% increase in total compensation over four years, with a 25% raise in the first year. CUPE said the offer was "below inflation, below market value, below minimum wage" and would still leave flight attendants unpaid for some hours of work, including boarding and waiting at airports ahead of flights. The union and the airline have publicly traded barbs about each other's willingness to reach an agreement. On Saturday, Jobs Minister Patty Hajdu ordered binding arbitration to end the dispute. CUPE made the rare move of directing its members to ignore a back-to-work order on Sunday and accused the government of "caving to corporate pressure". Earlier this month, 99.7% of employees represented by the union voted for a strike. Solve the daily Crossword
BBC News
2 days ago
- Business
- BBC News
Air Canada flight attendant union refuses to end strike
The union representing Air Canada flight attendants says it will continue to defy a back-to-work order despite the Canada Industrial Relations Board ruling their strike "unlawful".The independent federal tribunal deemed the job action by the cabin crews - now in its third day - illegal on Monday after the union defied a government back-to-work order issued over the weekend."If Air Canada thinks planes will be flying this afternoon, they're sorely mistaken," said Canadian Union of Public Employees president Mark strike by more than 10,000 flight attendants for Canada's largest airline has stranded tens of thousands of passengers since flights were grounded on Saturday. The Canada Industrial Relations Board decision ordered the union to send its members back to work by 12:00 EST (16:00GMT) on Monday, and also directed the members to return to their is unclear what consequences the CUPE now faces for its a news conference, Mr Hancock said the union is willing to accept any penalties for its refusal to comply, including monetary fines and jail time."If it means folks like me going to jail, then so be it," he told reporters, adding that the union will only accept to resolve this through a negotiated settlement at the bargaining table. Under Canadian law, the union and individual workers could be fined or sanctioned for refusing to return to work, Western University law professor Michael Lynk told Minister Mark Carney said it was "disappointing" that Air Canada and its cabin crew were unable to reach an agreement after eight months of negotiations. "We are in a situation where literally hundreds of thousands of Canadians and visitors to our country are being disrupted by this action," Carney said in Ottawa on Monday. "I urge both parties to resolve this as quickly as possible."The airline estimates some 500,000 passengers have so far been affected by flight attendants are calling for higher salaries and to be paid for work when aircraft are on the Saturday, Jobs Minister Patty Hajdu ordered binding arbitration to end the dispute. CUPE made the rare move of directing its members to ignore a back-to-work order on Sunday and accused the government of "caving to corporate pressure".
