Air Canada prepares shutdown plan as strike talks fail

Air Canada is preparing for a shutdown as talks between the company and its pilots have so far failed to lead to a new collective agreement.

Talks between the country’s biggest carrier and the Air Line Pilots Association, which represents more than 5,200 pilots at Air Canada and Air Canada Rouge, continue, but the parties remain far apart, Air Canada said Monday.

In August, the pilots “voted overwhelmingly in favour to authorize union leaders to call a strike.”

The union has been contract negotiations since June 2023 with the wide wage gap between Canadian pilots and their counterparts in the U.S. one of the main issues. The pilots are working under pay rates and quality-of-life provisions negotiated in 2014, the union said.

Unless an agreement is reached by Sept. 15, either party may issue a 72-hour strike or lock-out notice, which would trigger Air Canada’s three-day wind-down plan, the airline said.

Air Canada believes there is still time to reach an agreement, said Michael Rousseau, president and chief executive officer of Air Canada.

Rousseau said the wage increase “far exceeds” an average Canadian wage increase.

Abrupt shutdowns can cause “chaos” for travellers so Air Canada wants prepare customers from “an increasingly likely work stoppage,” he said.

“This includes the extremely difficult decision to begin an orderly shutdown of Air Canada and Air Canada Rouge once a 72-hour strike or lock-out notice is given, possibly as early as this Sunday,” Rousseau said.

The company is finalizing contingency plans to suspend most of its operations.

“We understand and apologize for the inconvenience this would cause our customers,” said Rousseau. “However, a managed shutdown is the only responsible course available to us.”

Air Canada is offering people free rebooking for people whose flights may be impacted by the strike.

“We are publicizing our plans to give the more than 110,000 people who travel with us each day greater certainty and the opportunity to reduce the risk of being stranded by using our goodwill policy to change or defer imminent travel at no cost,” said  Rousseau.

“We are also alerting the Government of Canada to the potential disruption’s impact upon Canadians.”

Air Canada Express flights will continue to operate, as third-party carriers Jazz and PAL Airlines provide these services. However, these regional partners only carry about 20 per cent of Air Canada’s daily customers, many of whom ultimately connect on Air Canada flights.

All customers whose flights are cancelled by Air Canada will be notified and will be eligible for a full refund, which can be obtained online or through the Air Canada mobile app.

The airline has also been arranging with other carriers to secure space for customers in the event of Air Canada flight cancellations.

Customers will be notified by Air Canada or their travel agency if options for travel on another carrier are identified for them. Seats on other carriers are expected to be very limited across all airlines, and refunds or accepting a future travel credit, or agreeing to travel on Air Canada at a later date, may be the only options available, the airline said.

Customers can find detailed information here.