Air Transat flight attendants unanimously turn down latest agreement

Friday, February 2, 2024

CUPE’s Air Transat Component reported that its 2,100 flight attendant members have declined the tentative agreement established on January 7. Following a five-session general assembly process and a subsequent 10-day voting period, 81.9% of members voted against the agreement, with an 88.7% participation rate. Key concerns revolved around compensation for ground and post-landing work hours, as well as onboard staffing.

The voting process also included a decision on renewing the expired strike mandate from January 23. Members favored a new mandate by 94.6%, effective until April 1, 2024.

Both parties plan to swiftly return to the negotiating table to resume discussions. In a bid to prioritize negotiations, the union refrains from providing further comments on the rejection of the tentative agreement.

The previous collective agreement for these flight attendants, stationed at Montreal (YUL) and Toronto (YYZ) airports, lapsed on October 31, 2022, initiating negotiations on April 27, 2023.

During general assemblies on November 27, flight attendants secured a strike mandate with an overwhelming 99.8% majority, marking a historic achievement for CUPE’s Air Transat Component. An initial tentative agreement was reached on December 14, but on January 2, the union announced a rejection with a 98.1% vote against, involving an 87% member participation.

CUPE’s Air Transat Component is part of CUPE’s Airline Division, representing over 18,500 flight attendants across various airlines. These include Air Transat, Air Canada, Air Canada Rouge, Sunwing, WestJet, Encore, Calm Air, Canadian North, Pivot Airlines, Flair Airlines, PAL, and Pascan.

As Canada’s largest union, the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) boasts 740,000 members nationwide, advocating for workers in diverse sectors such as health care, emergency services, education, municipalities, social services, libraries, utilities, transportation, and airlines.

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