Maritime travellers brace for disruptions of possible Air Canada strike

Many Maritime travellers are keeping a close eye on the potential Air Canada strike.

Air Canada flight attendants are preparing to return to the bargaining table, following an overwhelming vote in favour of a strike.

The Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) Air Canada component, which represents around 10,000 flight attendants at Air Canada and Air Canada Rouge, announced on Tuesday that members had voted 99.7 per cent in favour of a strike mandate.

The uncertainty has left some Maritime travellers bracing for potential flight disruptions.

“A lot of people are going to be pretty upset about it. I know somebody in particular who has flights booked to Europe in the not too distant future…she and her daughter are not very happy at this news,” says Wilfred Krasin, a traveller at the Halifax Stanfield International Airport.

Wesley Lesosky, president of the CUPE Air Canada Component Union, says the conclusion of their 10-year contract with the airline offers them an opportunity to re-negotiate wages, pensions and working conditions.

“We were having discussions on that, but the discussions just weren’t coming to fruition with an agreement. So we felt we needed to move through the process. And, this is the next stage.”

Lesosky says flight attendants also want to see unpaid labour addressed, and claims employees routinely work for free, doing things like boarding, deplaning and pre-flight security checks.

“It takes longer to do our job, but there’s no compensation for that. There’s no recognition for that. And a lot of that time is actually deemed our crew rest. So that’s, I think, the big point here is we need to get that kind of stuff fixed,” he says.

CTV News reached out to Air Canada for comment but did not hear back by deadline.

The union says they want to reach a deal and avoid disruptions for passengers.

“They’re striking for a reason, so I guess they need to be compensated properly. So, if they feel that they deserve more, they should get more money,” says Horace Brooks, another traveller at the Halifax airport.

Both Air Canada and the union will resume negotiations on Friday.