Air Canada: Government Order Ends Flight Attendant Strike

The Canadian government issued an order to end the Air Canada flight attendants' strike, which had resulted in the suspension of approximately 700 daily flights and affected over 100,000 passengers.

Air Canada announced that flights would gradually resume, but some would be canceled in the coming days to normalize the schedule. The Canadian Industrial Relations Board (CIRB) ordered Air Canada to resume operations and flight attendants to return to their duties.

The Minister of Employment, Patty Hajdu, moved to end the strike and require binding arbitration. The most contentious issue was compensation for time between flights and passenger support, as flight attendants are mainly paid when the plane is moving.

The Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) had requested a solution through negotiation. The CIRB ordered the extension of the collective agreement until a new agreement is reached.