The Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) has announced that its 2,100 flight attendant members at Air Transat have approved a strike mandate, with 99.8% voting in favour.
“The vote reflects the flight attendants' exceptionally high level of dissatisfaction with their working conditions, particularly with wages and purchasing power,” CUPE says, adding: “Following a dip during the COVID-19 pandemic, the overall outlook for the industry is once again extremely positive. “
Dominic Levasseur, President of the Air Transat Component of CUPE, says flight attendants “have had to make significant sacrifices during challenging times” over the past 15 years.
Air Transat flight attendants will be in a legal strike position as of January 3. (Photo Credit: Thinkstock)
“Now, faced with the dizzying rise in the cost of living and the industry's favourable prospects, they are ready to take action,” says Levasseur. “More than 50% of them have been forced to take on a second or even a third job to make ends meet, and their starting salary is only $26,577 per year."
CUPE says it is still possible to reach a tentative agreement without resorting to a strike.
"The ball is in the employer's court; they should be aware that our members have high expectations and are extremely motivated," stated Levasseur.
The collective agreement for these flight attendants based at airports in Montreal (YUL) and Toronto (YYZ) expired on October 31, 2022. Negotiations began officially on April 27, 2023. To date, there have been 33 negotiation sessions. With the strike mandate, a work stoppage would be legal as of January 3.
The Air Transat Component is part of CUPE's Airline Division, which represents more than 18,500 flight attendants employed at Air Transat, Air Canada, Air Canada Rouge, Sunwing, WestJet, Encore, Calm Air, Canadian North, Pivot Airlines, Flair Airlines, PAL and Pascan.
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