Air Canada Press Conference on Flight Attendant Strike Ends After Disruption by CUPE Protesters

An Air Canada press conference ended abruptly this morning after protesters from the CUPE union representing flight attendants entered the room and stood at the front carrying signs promoting their position.

The protesters were asked several times to allow Air Canada officials to answer in-person and online questions from journalists, but they refused to leave and the press conference was aborted.

Prior to the interruption, it was learned that Air Canada has started its gradual wind-down by cancelling long-haul flights scheduled to depart later today. Tomorrow will see 500 flights cancelled and by Saturday morning the entire network will be shut down.

Arielle Meloul-Wechsler, AC’s EVP and Chief Human Resources Officer, said that at the beginning of negotiations, the Air Canada Component of CUPE, which represents 10,000 Air Canada flight attendants, were asking for a compensation increase in excess of 100%.

The current offer, Meloul-Wechsler said, includes a 38% increase, including an offer for “ground pay,” which the CUPE union identifies as “unpaid work” before flights take off and after they land.

“We never left the table,” Meloul-Wechsler said. “We have made offers and we have responded to every offer (CUPE) made. CUPE wasted 10 precious days while they sought a strike mandate,” she added.

The Chief Human Resources Officer said CUPE was seeking “unsustainable” compensation goals.

“We are working really hard. We do know that the best deal is at the table. We hit an impasse, we offered arbitration, and it was refused,” she added.

Mark Nasr, EVP and Chief Operations Officer, said the airline “deeply regrets” the impact on customers. “We will work to mitigate the strike impact as much as we can,” he added.

That said, if the flight attendants walk out Saturday morning, there’s little Air Canada can do other than keep customers informed about the status of their travel plans.

“We are very disappointed by the actions of CUPE. A deal was and still is available,” said Meloul-Wechsler, adding that the Air Canada offer would make its flight attendants the best-paid in Canada.

The AC executives also criticized CUPE’s depiction of flight attendants earning “poverty wages.” 

“Everything progresses with seniority,” Meloul-Wechsler said. “A flight attendant makes $70,000 after 10 years and our offer would add 38% to that.”