Labour Minister Lisa Raitt urged the union representing Air Canada's mechanics, baggage handlers and cargo agents on Wednesday to head back to the bargaining table, after union leaders served strike notice.
The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAMAW) says that its 8,600 members will walk off the job midnight Monday if they don't get a new deal.
The proposed strike would correspond with March Break, and could leave thousands of Canadian families grounded during one of the year's busiest travel weeks.
Raitt told CTV's Power Play that the strike would be seen as a "calculated maneuver," given the traditional travel rush.
"In terms of the IAMAW -- they've done the deal already, they know how to create a deal and create a space for (workers), we want them to go back and do it," said Raitt.
Union vice-president Dave Ritchie said employees have given the company a number of concessions over the years, and has watched Air Canada give massive bonuses to management, while pension issues have not been addressed.
"If they can afford to give hundreds of millions of dollars to their executives, they can afford to give a fair, collective agreement to the people that help them get that (money)," he said at a Wednesday news conference.
The announcement followed the union membership's rejection of a tentative contract settlement signed in February, and a subsequent 78 per cent vote in favour of job action.
"It became clear by Tuesday afternoon that Air Canada was not prepared to make the adjustments to reach an agreement that our members would accept," Ritchie said.
He hoped Raitt would allow both parties to reach a negotiated settlement.
Raitt agreed that Air Canada employees have given concessions in the past, especially when "outside forces" like the 9/11 attacks and the global financial crisis hurt business.
But she noted that the government has not decided if it will take extra measures like forcing workers back to work if a strike does occur.
Besides the strike deadline, the message in the brief statement posted to the IAMAW Local 2323 website late Tuesday was blunt.
"We are the largest unionized workforce at Air Canada, without us, it's all grounded," it said.
In a response posted to the Air Canada website, executive vice president and chief operating officer Duncan Dee sought to reassure customers expecting to fly with the airline next week.
Negotiations are ongoing, Dee said in the statement, but he downplayed the potential disruption in the event a deal is not struck.
"Should a settlement not be reached and the IAMAW commences job action, the airline will endeavor to minimize inconvenience to its customers," Dee said in the statement.
Air Canada is currently in the midst of protracted negotiations with its pilots' union as well.
Those talks have been ongoing for 17 months, including a proposed contract that was rejected in a two-thirds vote last May.
Raitt, who stopped a flight attendants' walkout when she sent their dispute to the Canadian Industrial Relations Board last fall, had previously warned against job action targeting the typically busy March break travel season.
Hinting at federal intervention during a speech to the Economic Club of Canada last week, she promised to "do what is right and what is necessary for Canada."
In February, Raitt appointed two mediators to a six-month term working with the airline and its pilots union. One of them has since quit.
Jacques Lessard, the acting director-general of the federal mediation and conciliation service, is now working with both the Air Canada Pilots association and the IAMAW.
NDP MP Yvon Godin said Wednesday his party will oppose back-to-work legislation should the federal government try to force IAMAW members back on the job.
Air Canada employees are fighting to claw back concessions they made eight years ago, when the airline was in bankruptcy protection.
For its part, Canada's largest airline boasts of its survey ranking as North America's best international airline.
On the back of rising fuel costs and increased domestic competition, however Air Canada's latest financial report detailed a $249 million loss in 2011, including $60 million in the fourth quarter.
