Air Canada pilots vote for a strike mandate as talks continue
Posted February 14, 2012 6:35 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
The union representing Air Canada pilots has been given an overwhelming mandate to call a strike, though the pilots have said they won’t use that option while mediated talks are ongoing.
The union says 97 per cent of the 3,000 Air Canada pilots it represents have voted in favour of a strike if necessary to press their contract demands. That means the pilots could hit the bricks with 72 hours of notice.
“The corporation must now recognize the resolve of Air Canada pilots and come to the bargaining table with a renewed commitment to negotiations in good faith,” said Capt. Paul Strachan, president of the Air Canada Pilots Association.
Air Canada says travellers can keep booking flights as negotiations continue with a new federally appointed mediator to help resolve an ongoing dispute between the airline and its pilots.
Air Canada spokesman Peter Fitzpatrick says it’s business as usual at the country’s largest airline.
The company is also in a position to lock out its pilots, but it too has said it wants to keep talking with the union.
Air Canada’s president has said the company has no intention of imposing new contract terms or locking out its pilots.
One of the key sticking points for the pilots has been Air Canada’s plan to set up a low-cost international carrier whose pilots would earn less than those flying for the main airline.
Federal Labour Minister Lisa Raitt has stepped in to help Air Canada and its pilots come to an agreement.
The labour minister stepped into another Air Canada dispute last June when she moved back-to-work legislation for 3,800 striking Air Canada workers.
On Monday, Air Canada reached its third deal in four days after inking an agreement with its flight dispatcher association.
