Canada: Air Transat workers vote in favour of strike starting Jan 3 if new labour deal is not reached

More than 2,100 Air Transat workers representing a unit of The Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) reportedly voted to go on strike if necessary if their union does not reach a collective bargaining agreement with the Montreal-based airline.

Following the expiry of Air Transat's current labour deal in October 2022,  the union has been trying to negotiate a new pact with the airline since April with more than 33 different issues on the table, and compensation being a major one.

"The vote reflects the flight attendants' exceptionally high level of dissatisfaction with their working conditions, particularly with wages and purchasing power," the union was reported saying in a release.

"Following a dip during the COVID-19 pandemic, the overall outlook for the industry is once again extremely positive."

Dominic Levasseur, president of the Air Transat Component of CUPE, reportedly said that  there's still plenty of time to finalize a deal without disruption to passengers.

He added that in the event of a strike, all of the airline's flights would be cancelled starting at the tail end of the critical holiday flying season.

Faced with the rising cost of living and the industry's favourable prospects, more than 50 percent of them have been forced to take on a second or even a third job, added  Levasseur to make ends meet, and Air Transat workers are ready to take action.

(Reporting by Asha Bajaj)