Today, Air Canada and the Canadian Union for Public Employees (CUPE) announced they reached a tentative agreement, ending a strike that canceled thousands of flights and stranded hundreds of thousands of passengers since August 16.
Hugh Pouliot, spokesman for CUPE announced, “Flight attendants at Air Canada and Air Canada Rouge have reached a tentative agreement, achieving transformational change for our industry after a historic fight to affirm our Charter rights. Unpaid work is over. We have reclaimed our voice and our power.”
During mediation discussions, CUPE committed to have the airline’s 10,000 flight attendants immediately return to work, allowing the airline to resume the operations of Air Canada and Air Canada Rouge.
Michael Rousseau, President and Chief Executive Officer of Air Canada stated, “The suspension of our service is extremely difficult for our customers. We deeply regret and apologize for the impact on them of this labour disruption. Our priority now is to get them moving as quickly as possible. Restarting a major carrier like Air Canada is a complex undertaking. Full restoration may require a week or more, so we ask for our customers’ patience and understanding over the coming days. I assure them that everyone at Air Canada is doing everything possible to enable them to travel soon.”
The first flights are scheduled to resume on the evening of August 20.
By CEO NA Editorial Staff
