Air Canada has officially suspended all flights as a strike by its cabin staff commenced early Saturday morning, affecting approximately 130,000 passengers each day. The union representing over 10,000 flight attendants announced the industrial action, which will last 72 hours. In light of the situation, Air Canada has urged customers to avoid visiting airports unless they are flying with a different airline.
The strike began at 00:58 ET (04:58 GMT), but passengers were informed earlier in the week about potential disruptions. As a precaution, the airline began reducing its operations prior to the walkout, leading to the cancellation of 623 flights and impacting more than 100,000 travelers by Friday night. While all Air Canada and Air Canada Rouge flights are suspended, flights operated by Air Canada Jazz, PAL Airlines, and Air Canada Express remain unaffected.
The flight attendants are advocating for better wages and fair compensation for their time spent on the ground during boarding and flight preparations. Air Canada proposed a 38% increase in total compensation over four years, including a 25% raise in the initial year, but the union has dismissed this offer as inadequate—calling it "below inflation, below market value, below minimum wage."
Earlier this month, nearly unanimous support for a strike was noted, with 99.7% of the union's members voting in favor of action. Canadian Jobs Minister Patty Hajdu has encouraged both the airline and the union to re-engage in negotiations to avert the disruptive strike. However, CUPE has accused the airline of not negotiating in good faith for the past eight months and instead attempting to secure government intervention to sidestep direct discussions.
Air Canada has expressed regret over the impact the strike is having on its customers and hopes for a swift resolution to resume operations.
