Talks resume with Air Canada, flight attendants union says, after airline reached out

People protest in support and solidarity with Air Canada flight attendants, in downtown Montreal, Monday, Aug. 18, 2025. Jobs Minister Patty Hajdu intervened in the labour dispute between the two parties, ordering binding arbitration and operations to resume. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Christopher Katsarov

There’s hope today a deal to end a strike by Air Canada’s flight attendants could be reached at the bargaining table, following word from their union that both sides met for meetings last night.

On Monday, Air Canada extended a cancellation of all Air Canada and Air Canada Rouge flights through 4 p.m. ET today, and the airline’s chief operating officer said flight attendants needed to return to work before the airline could push on with negotiations.

The Canadian Union of Public Employees vowed that without a negotiated settlement, flight attendants would remain on strike.

But the Air Canada component of CUPE said in an online update to members last night that the airline reached out and that meetings resumed with the assistance of a mediator.

The union cautioned that the strike is “still on” and that the talks had “just commenced.”

The flight attendants remain on strike despite the federal government’s attempt to impose binding arbitration over the weekend.

The workers are also defying an order by the Canada Industrial Relations Board to return to work on Sunday, leading a board to ruling yesterday that the strike is unlawful.

CUPE and other labour leaders have cried foul over the federal government’s repeated use of Section 107 of the labour code to cut off workers’ right to strike and force them into arbitration.

One of the key complaints from the union representing Air Canada flight attendants is that workers are not paid for duties performed before takeoff.

Air Canada estimated Monday that some 500,000 customers’ flights have been cancelled since the strike began.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 19, 2025.