Travelers at airports across Canada and around the world have found themselves stranded and frustrated after more than 10,000 Air Canada flight attendants began a strike on August 16, 2025, defying a government-backed order to return to work. The disruption, which comes at the height of the summer travel season, has led to the cancellation of most of Air Canada’s approximately 700 daily flights—affecting over 100,000 passengers each day, according to reporting from Reuters and AP.
The strike began in the early hours of Saturday after contract talks between Air Canada and the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) broke down following eight months of negotiations. The union, representing the airline’s flight attendants, voted overwhelmingly—99.7% in favor—to walk off the job, demanding better pay and compensation for hours worked while planes are grounded. The airline’s latest offer included a 38% increase in total compensation over four years, with an hourly raise of 12% to 16% in the first year. However, CUPE rejected the proposal, arguing that it failed to keep pace with inflation and did not address the issue of unpaid labor.
“We demand a fair, negotiated contract and to be compensated for all hours worked,” CUPE stated in a release, as cited by CNN. The union’s president, Mark Hancock, was blunt outside Toronto’s Pearson International Airport: “Our members are not going back to work. We are saying no.”
Within hours of the strike’s onset, the Canadian government stepped in. Federal Jobs Minister Patty Hajdu invoked Section 107 of the Canada Labor Code, ordering the Canada Industrial Relations Board (CIRB) to direct flight attendants to resume their duties by 2 p.m. ET on August 17. Hajdu justified the intervention by citing the economic risks of continued disruption and the context of recent U.S. tariffs on Canadian goods. “Now is not the time to take risks with the economy,” she said, according to AP.
But CUPE refused to comply, calling the order “blatantly unconstitutional” and accusing the government of siding with Air Canada. “The Canadian government was violating our Charter rights to take job action and give Air Canada exactly what they want—hours and hours of unpaid labour from underpaid flight attendants, while the company pulls in sky-high profits and extraordinary executive compensation,” said Wesley Lesosky, president of the Air Canada component of CUPE, in a statement reported by CNN.
The defiance forced Air Canada to suspend its plans to resume limited flights Sunday evening, pushing the restart to Monday evening instead. The airline canceled 240 additional flights scheduled for Sunday afternoon alone. Customers were advised not to go to the airport unless they had confirmed bookings on other airlines, and the company offered full refunds or alternative travel options—though it warned that rebooking would be difficult given the peak season and limited seat availability on other carriers.
The situation at airports quickly became chaotic. Passengers, some camped out in lounges with nowhere to go, expressed their confusion and irritation. “We are kind of left to figure it out for ourselves and fend for ourselves with no recourse or options provided by Air Canada at this time,” said Elizabeth Fourney of Vancouver to Reuters. Francesca Tondini, a visitor from Italy, recounted being told by Air Canada, “maybe tomorrow, maybe Tuesday, maybe Friday, maybe Saturday—they don’t know!” after her flight was canceled twice.
Legal experts say the union’s refusal to obey the return-to-work order is highly unusual in Canada. “The federal government has entrusted a board to administer these rules in the Canadian Labor Code, and if you defy them, you are transgressing and essentially violating the law,” explained Rafael Gomez, a professor of employment relations at the University of Toronto, in Reuters. Michael Lynk, professor emeritus at Western University’s Faculty of Law, noted that defiance could result in fines or even jail time for union leaders, referencing the 1978 postal workers’ strike as a historical precedent. “The union leadership could face the same consequences as what happened 45 years ago. It could be fines against the union ... potential of jail time for the union leaders,” Lynk said.
The government faces a tricky path forward. While it could pursue court action to enforce the CIRB’s order, it might also attempt to pass back-to-work legislation—a move requiring parliamentary support, but Parliament is not scheduled to reconvene until September 15. Hajdu’s press secretary, Jennifer Kozelj, said the minister is “monitoring this situation closely,” and emphasized the CIRB’s independence. The board itself has not commented on the union’s refusal or on calls for its chair—formerly Air Canada’s counsel—to recuse herself from the decision.
For its part, Air Canada maintains it has acted in good faith. The company’s statement, quoted by AP, accused the union of “illegally directing its flight attendant members to defy a direction from the Canadian Industrial Relations Board.” The airline argues its compensation offer “would have made our flight attendants the best compensated in Canada,” but the union remains unmoved.
The broader business community has largely sided with the government’s intervention. The Business Council of Canada and the Canadian Chamber of Commerce both supported the imposition of binding arbitration, citing the need to protect the economy and keep essential travel services running. Meanwhile, unions and labor rights advocates have criticized the use of Section 107 to force binding arbitration, claiming it undermines workers’ leverage and the right to collective bargaining.
The most contentious sticking point in negotiations remains compensation for time spent on the ground—when attendants are helping passengers board or waiting between flights. Currently, attendants are primarily paid only when the aircraft is in motion, a practice the union says results in significant unpaid labor. Air Canada has so far resisted changing this compensation structure, leading to the current impasse.
As the standoff drags on, passengers and workers alike are left in limbo. Air Canada Express flights operated by Jazz or PAL continue to run as scheduled, offering a lifeline to some, but the vast majority of travelers face uncertainty. With legal challenges likely and the government’s options constrained by the parliamentary calendar, the dispute could set a new precedent for labor relations in Canada’s transportation sector.
For now, travelers, flight attendants, and the airline itself are all waiting to see what happens next—a rare and dramatic standoff at the heart of Canada’s busiest travel season.
