TORONTO — Approximately 10,000 flight attendants from Air Canada have rejected the company’s proposed wage offer, which was agreed upon by the union and airline last month, although another strike is not anticipated.
Flight attendants at Air Canada wrapped up voting Saturday on a tentative new contract, with 99.1% voting down the airline’s wage offer.
The airline says the wage portion will now be referred to mediation as previously agreed to by both sides.
According to a statement from the airline, “Air Canada and CUPE have considered this possible result and have jointly decided that if the tentative agreement was not approved, the wage component would move to mediation, and if no resolution is found there, it would proceed to arbitration.”
“Both parties have also agreed that no labor disruption will occur, meaning there will be no strikes or lock-outs, and flights will continue as scheduled,” the statement added.
The Canadian Union of Public Employees’ Air Canada component notes that most conditions will remain in a new collective agreement with the airline, with the wage issue excluded.
Operations at Air Canada resumed on August 19 following an agreement with the union, putting an end to a strike by 10,000 flight attendants that affected the travel plans of hundreds of thousands. The walkout during the height of the summer travel period affected around 130,000 passengers daily.
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