Union Rejects Order, So Air Canada Scraps Restart

Government board had told flight attendants to be on the job by 2pm Sunday
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Aug 17, 2025 10:00 AM CDT
Updated Aug 17, 2025 1:17 PM CDT
Flights Will Resume in Hours: Air Canada
An Air Canada agent, left, talks with a man as Air Canada flight attendants strike at Montreal-Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport in Montreal on Saturday.   (Graham Hughes/The Canadian Press via AP)

Air Canada suspended plans to restart operations on Sunday after the union representing 10,000 flight attendants said it will defy a government order to return to work. The Canada Industrial Relations Board had ordered employees back to work by 2pm Sunday, and Air Canada then said it planned to resume flights Sunday evening. But the union responded by saying it will challenge the order as unconstitutional, the AP reports. "Our members are not going back to work," said President Mark Hancock of the Canadian Union of Public Employees outside Toronto's Pearson International Airport. "We are saying no." Canada's largest airline now says it will resume flights Monday evening. The backdrop:

  • The government's role: Federal Jobs Minister Patty Hajdu had said that now is not the time to take risks with the economy, noting the unprecedented tariffs the US has imposed on Canada. The airline said Sunday the board has extended the term of the existing collective agreement until a new one is determined by the arbitrator.
  • The negotiations: Air Canada and the union have been in contract talks for about eight months. Both sides have said they remain far apart on the issues of pay and the unpaid work flight attendants do when planes aren't in the air. The airline's latest proposal included a 38% increase in total compensation, including benefits and pensions, over four years, that it said "would have made our flight attendants the best compensated in Canada." The union pushed back, saying the proposed 8% raise in the first year didn't go far enough because of inflation.

  • Cancellations: According to numbers from aviation analytics provider Cirium, Air Canada canceled a total of 494 flights on Sunday morning. That's in addition to the hundreds of flights it canceled in the previous days. Air Canada operates around 700 flights per day.
  • Passengers' options: Travelers whose flights are impacted will be eligible to request a full refund on the airline's website or mobile app, according to Air Canada. The airline said it would also offer alternative travel options through other Canadian and foreign airlines when possible. Still, it warned that it could not guarantee immediate rebooking because flights on other airlines are already full "due to the summer travel peak."

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