Disappointment was the prevailing mood on the picket line outside Winnipeg’s airport Saturday, following a federal back-to-work order. Shortly after federal Jobs Minister Patty Hajdu announced the order, a member of Parliament delivered a speech in support of the striking workers. Leah Gazan, NDP MP for Winnipeg Centre, joined the picket line outside the departures level of Winnipeg James Armstrong Richardson International Airport. “I’m here to stand with you in solidarity today, to say unpaid work doesn’t fly,” Gazan said. “The fact that the Liberal government is forcing you back to work — I’m here to say: shame on Minister Patty Hajdu, shame on Mark Carney.” Striking Air Canada workers responded by chanting, “Shame on you, Patty Hajdu.” “(Mark Carney) is talking about national interest right now. Are workers not? Is fair pay and workers’ rights not a national interest?” Gazan added. “I’m asking Canadians to stand in solidarity with workers from coast to coast to coast, to let this government know that if it wants to talk about national interest, it needs to put workers first.” One flight attendant on the picket line expressed deep disappointment. “Very, very disappointed. Our bargaining rights were taken away,” she said. “I was so excited. I thought, ‘Wow, I think the landscape is changing. The people have a voice now … maybe this is history.’ “What I realized is they gave us a few hours of it — let us ride the high — and then took it away,” she added.
