More than 98% of Air Transat flight attendants have voted against a tentative contract with the Canadian leisure carrier, calling for increased pay and raising the possibility of a strike after the busy holiday travel season, as reported in a letter from the union to cabin crew seen by Reuters on Tuesday.
Rising Tension on Fair Compensation
The union for 18,500 Canadian flight attendants mentioned that one primary reason for the contract's rejection was that the salary increases did not match the rising living expenses.
Aerospace and other industries' unions are securing higher wages due to a competitive job market and increasing inflation, impacting people's finances. Canadian and U.S. flight attendants are working to stop the practice of not paying them for the time spent during boarding and waiting at the airport before and between flights.
Reaching a Tentative Agreement
Last month, the airline reached a tentative agreement with the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), representing around 2,100 Transat workers, which offered pay increases of about 18% over five years, which the airline did not immediately respond to.
"Given members' particularly high dissatisfaction it is still possible that the union gives strike notice," the CUPE release said, confirming an earlier Reuters report from an internal notice to cabin crew.
The Threat for Potential Strike
In late November, Transat flight attendants voted to approve the authority for a potential strike, allowing them to strike with 72 hours' notice, which, per the Canadian Labor Code, would have become legally permissible starting January 3, with Friday as the earliest possible time. However, notice has not yet been given.
Transat spokesperson Julie Lamontagne expressed disappointment with the outcome, as they were confident most flight attendants would accept the tentative agreement. The company is returning to the bargaining table to find common ground soon.
Pushing for Boarding and Waiting Time
Unions in aerospace, construction, airline, and rail industries have pushed for increased wages and additional benefits due to a competitive job market over the last two years, where
flight attendants are calling for an end to the practice of not paying them for the time spent during boarding and waiting at the airport before and between flights.
Proposed Payment Being Rejected
Flight attendants are only paid when the aircraft moves, with Delta Air Lines being the sole U.S. carrier compensating attendants during boarding time. As per briefing material seen by Reuters, the rejected contract proposed paying Canadian flight attendants the federal minimum wage of C$16.65 for the currently unpaid time ahead of continental flights.
Flight attendants at Southwest Airlines rejected a five-year contract last month. While the proposed contract would have made them the highest-paid cabin crew in the industry, it did not include compensation for boarding time.
RELATED ARTICLE: US Mediators Reject the Attempt by American Airlines Flight Attendants to Clear the Path for a Strike
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