Air Canada flight attendants initiated a significant strike a week ago with a powerful slogan: "Unpaid work won't fly." This protest highlighted the longstanding practice in the North American aviation sector of not compensating cabin crew for their ground duties prior to flight departures.
In contrast, many European airlines provide their cabin crew with salaries instead of hourly wages, a notion that caught the attention of Canadian travelers. This recent strike took place during the high-demand summer travel season but ended following a tentative deal reached on Tuesday between Air Canada and the Canadian Union for Public Employees (Cupe).
While specific details of the agreement are still under wraps, insiders report that it includes a phased pay increase and, importantly, the introduction of partial pay for boarding activities and cabin checks—a first for the region. Industry experts suggest this could set a new benchmark for aviation labor standards in North America, with the union branding the outcome as "historic."
Despite the progress, many flight attendants—who must vote on the agreement—remain unhappy and skeptical about its acceptance. This echoes a broader issue, as other airlines like Air Transat and WestJet have similar compensation structures that lack ground pay.
John Gradek, an aviation management expert, warns that providing ground pay at Air Canada might trigger widespread changes across North American airlines. Historically, the rationale behind the lack of such compensation was based on the ease of tracking flight timings rather than ground work.
Air Canada's executive management has stated that over half of their "mainline" flight attendants earned more than CAD 54,000 (USD 39,000), with senior staff making upwards of CAD 70,000. Yet, as one long-time attendant noted, they estimated performing around 40 hours of unpaid work each month, a common sentiment among their peers.
The trend toward compensating flight attendants for ground work gained momentum after the COVID-19 pandemic reshaped boarding protocols and heightened the complexity of flight preparation. Delta Airlines became the first in North America to implement ground pay in 2022, prompting other carriers like American and Alaska Airlines to follow suit.
Post-agreement, Air Canada's COO claimed to offer "industry-leading compensation," yet concerns linger regarding the finalization of the deal and the effect on entry-level wages. With future disputes likely moving to arbitration rather than strikes, industry analysts predict a lasting change in compensation practices, especially as both Air Transat and WestJet gear up for their upcoming negotiations.
Overall, the movement sparked by the Air Canada strike is seen as a landmark for labor rights in Canada, particularly since public sentiment was largely aligned with the striking workers—a potential shift in how labor disputes are approached going forward.
