Air Canada flight attendants ignore back-to-work order, continue strike, says union

ISTANBUL

Air Canada flight attendants will continue their strike in defiance of a back-to-work order, despite the federal government's decision to impose binding arbitration to resolve the dispute, according to the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), which spoke to Radio-Canada on Sunday.

The CUPE, representing 10,000 flight attendants, criticized federal Jobs Minister Patty Hajdu, accusing her of yielding to pressure from Air Canada, according to CBC News.

Earlier Sunday, the Montreal-based airline announced plans to gradually resume flights beginning that evening but warned that operations would take several days to fully normalize.

Air Canada also stated that the Canada Industrial Relations Board (CIRB) had ordered the airline to resume services and have flight attendants back on duty by 2 pm ET.

The federal government's back-to-work order came on Saturday, less than 12 hours after the strike and lockout began.

"I don't think anyone's in the mood to go back to work," Lillian Speedie, vice-president of CUPE Local 4092, told CBC's News Network at a picket line outside Toronto Pearson International Airport in Mississauga on Sunday.

"To legislate us back to work 12 hours after we started? I'm sorry, snowstorms have shut down Air Canada for longer than we were allowed to strike," he added.

On Sunday, Air Canada announced that the Canada Industrial Relations Board (CIRB) mandated the extension of the terms of the collective agreement—originally set to expire on March 31—until a new agreement is finalized between the airline and the union.

More than 10,000 Air Canada flight attendants who went on strike early Saturday will be ordered to return to work by the Canada Industrial Relations Board (CIRB), said Jobs Minister Patty Hajdu.

Speaking at a news conference in Ottawa, Hajdu said she instructed the CIRB to order Air Canada and its employees to “resume and continue their operations and duties in order to secure industrial peace and protect the interests of Canada, Canadians, and the economy.”

The announcement followed Air Canada's suspension of all operations in response to the strike.

The government acted under Section 107 of the Canada Labour Code, which permits ministerial intervention in labor disputes, after Air Canada requested the move, according to the union.