Travel chaos could be coming to Canada in just a few days.
Air Canada today (Sept. 9) said a pilots strike appears “increasingly likely,” and that it was preparing for an “orderly shutdown” as early as Sunday, Sept. 15.
Even a partial shutdown of Canada’s largest airline would result in travel chaos in Canada, and also in other cities around the world. Air Canada flies to more than 180 destinations across the globe, including the U.S.A., Europe, Asia, South America and Australia.
Bloomberg last week reported that Air Canada offered pilots a deal that would raise some pilot wages by as much as 30% over several years. The airline did not confirm that information, and it’s not clear if the union has voted on the proposal.
The pilots’ union denounced the AC shutdown announcement a few hours after it was made.
“Air Canada should stop threatening to disrupt air travel and come to the bargaining table with serious proposals to keep the flagship Canadian carrier competitive in the global aviation market,” said First Officer Charlene Hudy, Air Canada Master Executive Council (MEC) Chair, ALPA. “Air Canada continues to post record profits – and reward its executives handsomely – while expecting pilots to accept below market compensation.
“Now, because of their corporate greed, Air Canada is preparing to disrupt flights and inconvenience passengers. Air Canada should get back to the bargaining table – and get serious about negotiating a contract that reflects the unique contributions of its pilots.”
Air Canada said it has alerted the federal government to the potential disruption.
Then Prime Minister Stephen Harper intervened to stop a potential Air Canada strike in 2012. The Trudeau government has historically been reluctant to get involved in labour disputes, but you have to wonder if the Prime Minister, who’s been struggling in election polls, might want to seize the opportunity to look good with the Canadian public and order the pilots and AC management to find a solution.
Reuters recently reported that the Liberal government in Ottawa remains reluctant to get involved.
“Our government firmly believes in the collective bargaining process and Canadians are counting on the parties to get a deal,” a statement from Canadian Labour Minister Steven MacKinnon’s office said today.
Here is the airline’s formal statement:
Air Canada today said that it is finalizing contingency plans to suspend most of its operations. Talks between the company and the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA), representing more than 5,200 pilots at Air Canada and Air Canada Rouge, continue, but the parties remain far apart. Unless an agreement is reached, beginning on September 15, 2024, either party may issue a 72-hour strike or lock out notice, which would trigger the carrier’s three-day wind down plan.
“Air Canada believes there is still time to reach an agreement with our pilot group, provided ALPA moderates its wage demands which far exceed average Canadian wage increases. However, Canadians have recently seen the chaos abrupt airline shutdowns cause for travellers, which obliges us to do everything we can to protect our customers from an increasingly likely work stoppage. This includes the extremely difficult decision to begin an orderly shutdown of Air Canada and Air Canada Rouge once a 72-hour strike or lock out notice is given, possibly as early as this Sunday,” said Michael Rousseau, President and Chief Executive Officer of Air Canada.
“We understand and apologize for the inconvenience this would cause our customers. However, a managed shutdown is the only responsible course available to us. We are publicizing our plans to give the more than 110,000 people who travel with us each day greater certainty and the opportunity to reduce the risk of being stranded by using our goodwill policy to change or defer imminent travel at no cost. We are also alerting the Government of Canada to the potential disruption’s impact upon Canadians.”
Air Canada Express flights will continue to operate, as third-party carriers Jazz and PAL Airlines provide these services. However, these regional partners only carry about 20 per cent of Air Canada’s daily customers, many of whom ultimately connect on Air Canada flights.
For customers
Air Canada’s first consideration is the needs of customers and providing peace of mind. For detailed information see www.aircanada.com/action.
All customers whose flights are cancelled by Air Canada would be notified and will be eligible for a full refund, which can be obtained online at www.aircanada.com or through the Air Canada mobile app.
The airline has also been arranging with other carriers to secure space for customers in the event of Air Canada flight cancellations. Customers will be notified by Air Canada or their travel agency if options for travel on another carrier are identified for them. Unfortunately, seats on other carriers are expected to be very limited across all airlines, and refunds or accepting a future travel credit, or agreeing to travel on Air Canada at a later date, may be the only options available.
Since August 27, Air Canada has had in place a goodwill policy allowing customers holding bookings on any fare type with travel between September 15 and 23, 2024, to make changes if they wish to at no cost or to receive a credit for future travel. This policy will be expanded as warranted.
Under Canada’s Airline Passenger Protection Regulations, customers in Canada are not eligible for compensation for delayed or cancelled flights, meals, hotels or other incidental expenses for situations outside the carrier’s control such as a labour disruption. Air Canada will in all cases inform passengers of their rights under applicable rules if their flight is cancelled or delayed.
Customers with bookings whose flights are cancelled in the event of a labour disruption are strongly advised against going to the airport without a confirmed booking for a new flight (check your flight’s status on www.aircanada.com before going to the airport). Customers are also advised to use self-service tools as contact centre wait times are expected to be highly elevated.
