Air Canada is calling on Canada’s minister of labour to prohibit the airline’s pilots from walking off the job, though the minister insists the parties should reach an agreement without government interference.
The Montreal-based airline on 12 September issued a public statement saying it “urges” the government to intervene should the carrier and union Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA) not agree to a new pilot contract by a 15 September deadline.
That proposition, which Air Canada insists is needed to prevent massive air-travel disruption, has already prompted stern criticism from at least one other Canadian airline.
The office of Canadian labour minister Steven MacKinnon says the airline and union need to reach a deal.
“It is incumbent on both parties to work together to reach an agreement. Federal mediators are supporting the parties towards that end,” MacKinnon’s office says. “Our government firmly believes in the collective bargaining process and Canadians are counting on the parties to get a deal.”
”There’s no reason why these parties can’t work together and get a deal done,” added MacKinnon in a 12 September post on X. “I am in Toronto to meet with Air Canada and ALPA pilots.”
Air Canada says its negotiations with ALPA are ongoing. If the parties fail to reach a deal by 15 September, ALPA can issue a 72h strike notice, meaning Air Canada’s 5,200 pilots could walk as soon as 18 September.
“If the airline’s contract negotiations with its pilot union fail, a government direction for binding arbitration will be necessary to avoid a major disruption of air travel,” Air Canada’s statement says.
It adds that the labour minister can order the parties into binding arbitration under Section 107 of Canada’s labour code. That provision grants the minister authority to take steps to “maintain or secure industrial peace and to promote conditions favourable to the settlement of industrial disputes and differences”.
It is unclear if the airline formally made such a request directly to the government.
Neither Air Canada nor ALPA responded to requests for comment.
The airline says a strike would “upset the plans of 110,000 or more travellers a day and delay time-sensitive cargo shipments”. Barring government intervention, the airline says it has prepared plans for the “orderly” shutdown of operation.
On 9 September, Air Canada said it and ALPA remained “far apart” on an agreement, adding that ALPA, citing wages paid by US carriers, has been seeking gains that “far exceed average Canadian wage increases”.
As news of Air Canada’s government-intervention strategy spread on 12 September, Air Transat chief executive Annick Guerard pushed back.
“The extension of such an extraordinary intervention would be an undeniable advantage to the detriment of other airlines in Canada,” Guerard says.
Another major Canadian airline, WestJet, did not respond to a request for comment. Porter Airlines declines to comment.
Story updated on 12 September to include comments made by MacKinnon.
