Overview

• Jobs Minister Patty Hajdu invoked Section 107 of the Canada Labour Code to send the dispute to binding arbitration and directed the Canada Industrial Relations Board to enforce a return-to-work order.
• CUPE flight attendants publicly rejected the CIRB’s 2 p.m. Sunday deadline by ripping up orders on picket lines and filing a Federal Court challenge against the back-to-work directive.
• Air Canada reported about 940 cancelled mainline and Rouge flights by Sunday evening, stranding thousands of passengers and postponing its limited service resumption until Monday night.
• The union’s core demands focus on pay for unpaid pre-flight and post-flight duties and wage increases that keep pace with inflation amid entry-level pay disparities.
• With CIRB arbitration underway under Section 107, CUPE’s continued strike, pickets and legal action leave the timeline for a new contract and schedule stabilization uncertain.