The Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) announced Monday that the union representing 2,100 flight attendants has reached an agreement on a new labor contract with Canadian leisure airline Air Transat, disrupting the airline’s operations. Concerns about a strike that could result in a crisis have allayed.
CUPE said in a statement that a general assembly of member states will be held in the coming days to disclose the agreement and put forward proposals for a vote.
Air Transat did not respond to Reuters’ request for comment.
Earlier this month, flight attendants rejected an interim agreement with airlines, CUPE said, primarily because the agreement did not provide pay increases commensurate with rising costs of living.
Flight attendants in Canada and the United States are calling on airlines to end the industry practice of not receiving compensation for time spent boarding or waiting at the airport before boarding or between flights.
Flight attendants at Southwest Airlines last month voted against a five-year contract that would have made them the highest-paid flight attendants in the industry but did not include compensation for flight time.
The move comes as unions have been aggressively pushing North American airlines to improve pay, benefits and working conditions, a strategy that has resulted in record contracts for some pilots. I was disappointed.
Alaska Airlines flight attendants will begin voting Monday to authorize a strike for the first time in 20 years. Voting is extended until February 13th.
In Canada, Transat TRZ-T flight attendants voted in late November to authorize them to strike with 72 hours’ notice.
The collective bargaining agreement for flight attendants based at Montreal and Toronto airports expires on October 31, 2022.
