Air Canada pilots will be in a legal strike position in two weeks, but an airline spokesman says there’s plenty of time to reach an agreement.
“Air Canada is in negotiations with the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA),” the company said in a 03SEP update on its website. “Currently, our operations are not affected, and our flights are operating as scheduled.”
Air Canada spokesperson Peter Fitzpatrick told the Toronto Star that there is “still sufficient time to reach an agreement and it is our intent to finalize a negotiated agreement with ALPA over the coming weeks.”
Previous reports have suggested the first day for a legal strike by AC pilots is 17SEP. The Star story said the date is 18SEP.
Judging by social media posts, potential Air Canada pax appear somewhat nervous about potential flight cancellations. The airline recently instituted flexible booking policies to ease concerns about a possible strike.
The federal government has the power to force Air Canada pilots back to AC flight decks if a strike takes place. With a potential Air Canada lockout of pilots looming in 2012, then Prime Minister Stephen Harper intervened and sent the dispute to a federal arbitrator.
At the time, Harper said a lockout or strike would have a significant impact on travellers and the Canadian economy.
But the smoke signals from Ottawa suggest the Trudeau government doesn’t feel the same way about interfering in labour disputes.
“Is the government likely to get involved? My answer to that is probably not,” John Gradek, faculty lecturer in Aviation Management at McGill University, told the Star. “The government will stand back and let (the) … process take its course.
“This is not a national emergency. This is not an essential service. It will be inconvenient for passengers,” he said. “There is enough capacity out there to complement whatever loss of capacity Air Canada would be suffering as a result of this strike.”
