Ottawa [Canada], August 20: Leaders of the union on strike against Air Canada (AC.TO), opens new tab said on Monday they would risk jail time rather than have cabin crews forced back to work by a federal labor board, raising the stakes in a battle that has disrupted flights for hundreds of thousands of travelers during summer tourist season.
The Canadian Union of Public Employees said the strike would continue until the carrier negotiates on wages and unpaid work, even after the Canada Industrial Relations Board (CIRB) declared the strike unlawful.
"If it means folks like me going to jail, then so be it. If it means our union being fined, then so be it. We're looking for a solution here," said Mark Hancock, CUPE national president, at a press conference shortly after a deadline by the board to return to work expired with no union action to end the strike.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney earlier in the day pleaded for a resolution, which also comes as the Canadian economy is facing tariff pressure from its biggest trade partner, the United States.
"We are in a situation where literally hundreds of thousands of Canadians and visitors to our country are being disrupted by this action," Carney told reporters in Ottawa. "I urge both parties to resolve this as quickly as possible."
The third day of a strike by more than 10,000 flight attendants has stranded passengers and led Air Canada to suspend its third-quarter and full-year 2025 guidance, sending shares down about 1%.
The carrier, which normally carries 130,000 people daily and is part of the global Star Alliance of airlines, had planned to start ramping up operations on Sunday evening, after CIRB ordered the union to return to work and start binding arbitration.
In a message to cabin crew on Sunday seen by Reuters, an Air Canada executive told workers they would be accountable for defying the board's order and not returning to work.
"What your union has not explained is that by not returning to work, you are personally accountable for that decision," said Andrew Yiu, vice president, in-flight service, for Air Canada's mainline and low-cost Rouge service. "To be clear, there is no lockout in place, and the continued strike is illegal."
Source: Fijian Broadcasting Corporation
