Ottawa: Air Canada has reached an agreement with its striking workers, paving the way for flight operations to resume from Tuesday. The airline announced that services will gradually restart and all flights are expected to operate as per schedule by night.
The agreement came after nine hours of talks held late Monday in the presence of a government-appointed arbitrator. The union representing over 10,000 workers said it was decided that the time spent by cabin staff on airport services before flights would now be treated as duty hours.
Discussions on other demands will continue in the coming days. The union has directed its members to return to work diligently.
Air Canada CEO Michael Rosseau confirmed the breakthrough, urging passengers to remain patient as normalcy may take a few days to restore. “The disruption caused by the strike has created some gaps which may take time to fill. We remain committed to providing better services,” he said, while apologising for the inconvenience faced by passengers.
Millions of travellers had been affected since the strike began on Saturday night. Despite the government declaring the strike illegal, the union had remained firm on its demands until Monday’s agreement.
