Labor Action Could Come To A Vote Next Month

Air Canada Flight Attendants have rejected a tentative agreement reached with Air Canada. After ten days of voting, 87.8 per cent of CUPE members of the union’s Air Canada Component voted against the tentative agreement.
 
“The results send a strong message to the company,” said Jeff Taylor, President of the Air Canada Component of CUPE. “As a Bargaining Committee, we have heard our members loud and clear. We negotiated the best deal we felt we could in the current political context. But it wasn't enough and we will take that message back to the employer in the strongest possible way.”
 
Turnout in the vote was very high, with 78.6 per cent of the members casting their vote.
 
“We understand our members’ demand and desire for a better deal and for the respect they deserve. After a decade of concessions, the membership has clearly said it wants a fair deal, especially since the company is in a much better financial position,” said Taylor.
 
The union’s executive will meet with members over the coming days at local union meetings in Toronto, Montreal, Calgary and Vancouver and will proceed immediately to a strike vote which will take place between September 4 and September 13.
 
Taylor said the union will meet with the employer at the earliest opportunity to resume negotiations.

The Canadian News Service reports that this is just the latest in a series of labor setbacks for Air Canada this year. Its pilots voted down a tentative agreement earlier this year, and its customer service agents walked off the job for three days in May. That labor action ended when the Canadian government said it would introduce legislation to force the strikers back to work.

In a statement on its website, Air Canada said operations would not be affected.

"Air Canada has been advised by the Canadian Union of Public Employees that the tentative agreement reached by the Company and the CUPE Negotiating Committee on August 1, 2011 was not ratified by the union membership," the statement reads.

"Air Canada confirms it is business as usual for the airline and that customers can continue to book Air Canada flights with confidence.

"CUPE represents approximately 6,800 flight attendants and its collective agreement expired on March 31, 2011."

FMI: http://cupe.ca, www.aircanada.com