TORONTO (AP) — More than 620 Air Canada flights, many of them international, have been canceled as the clock ticked down Friday toward a possible flight attendant strike, leaving travelers around the world stranded and scrambling during the peak summer season.
The bitter contract dispute between Canada's largest airline and the union representing 10,000 of its flight attendants escalated Friday after the union rejected the airline's request to enter government-led arbitration, which would eliminate its right to strike and allow an outside mediator to decide the terms of a new contract.
Flight attendants were scheduled to walk off the job at approximately 1 a.m. EST on Saturday. At the same time, Air Canada indicated it would begin blocking flight attendants from accessing airports. The actions threaten to affect approximately 130,000 travelers per day.
Air Canada said more than 623 flights had been canceled as of Friday night, affecting more than 100,000 people.
Employment Minister Patty Hajdu met with the airline and the union last night, urging them to work harder to reach an agreement “once and for all.”
“It is unacceptable that so little progress has been made. Canadians are counting on both sides to do their best,” Hajdu said in a statement posted on social media.
Union spokesman Hugh Pouliot spoke about the meeting between Hajdu and Air Canada representatives.
“CUPE (Canadian Union of Public Employees) has engaged with the mediator to convey our willingness to continue negotiating, despite Air Canada's failure to respond to our last two offers since Tuesday,” he said in an email. “We are here to negotiate an agreement, not to strike.”