Canada government orders striking Air Canada flight attendants into binding arbitration

Canada’s federal authorities has ordered Air Canada flight attendants again to work after a breakdown in collective bargaining negotiations between the airline and the Canadian Union of Public Staff (CUPE). Patty Hajdu, Minister of Jobs and Households and chief of the Federal Financial Improvement Company for Northern Ontario, introduced the choice on Saturday, citing the necessity to “keep and safe industrial peace, shield Canadians and promote circumstances to resolve the dispute,” given the strike’s influence on the nationwide financial system.

Flight attendants, represented by CUPE, issued a strike discover on Wednesday and started job motion on Saturday after talks with Air Canada collapsed. The union is demanding larger wages and pay for all hours labored, noting that flight attendants will not be compensated for crucial duties similar to security checks, boarding and deplaning, and responding to onboard emergencies.

Air Canada has proposed a cumulative wage improve of 17.2 p.c over 4 years, however the union didn’t settle for the provide, saying it falls under inflation and doesn’t handle broader considerations.

Wesley Leosky, president of the Air Canada Part of CUPE, mentioned that “Air Canada has raked in billions in earnings prior to now few years. They’ll afford to pay us pretty with out elevating prices for the general public”. Either side have accused one another of stalling negotiations and spreading misinformation.

Minister Hajdu mentioned that she has requested the Canada Industrial Relations Board to impose closing and binding arbitration and prolong the present contract till a brand new settlement is reached. “In a yr by which Canadian households and companies have already skilled an excessive amount of disruption and uncertainty, this isn’t the time so as to add further challenges and disruptions to their lives and our financial system,” Hajdu mentioned.