Air Canada strike averted: travel advisors “ecstatic”; pilots offered 42% pay raise

Canadian travel advisors breathed a collective sigh of relief in the early hours of Sunday morning (Sept. 15) after Air Canada reached a tentative, four-year collective agreement with its pilots’ union, the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA), averting a work stoppage that would have disrupted the plans of thousands of travellers.

PAX gathered some industry reaction at TravelOnly’s national conference, which is currently taking place in Las Vegas.

Holly McBean said she was “ecstatic” to hear the news as she has clients currently travelling in destinations, and others travelling soon who were set to fly with Air Canada this week.  

“I’ve already reached out to my clients who were waiting on that midnight deadline,” McBean said in a late-night statement, referring to Saturday’s cut-off time, which would have triggered the start of a shutdown of Air Canada and Air Canada Rouge.

Pat Probert of the Bob Family Travel Team, who is in Las Vegas with McBean, echoed that positive sentiment.

Upon hearing the news, Probert said he began sending messages overseas to clients on cruise ships, who were set to disembark on days that were, initially, set to see flight cancellations. 

“They’ll be waking up, knowing that their flight will be waiting,” said Probert, who publicly voiced his frustration last week about the potential strike, telling PAX about some of the booking challenges he was experiencing.  

“Many advisors at TravelOnly are excited about this news,” Probert said, sharing the general word on the street at his host agency’s conference. “It also takes pressure off all the other airlines.” 

The Association of Canadian Travel Agencies and Travel Advisors (ACTA) posted a statement to its LinkedIn account on Monday, thanking Air Canada and the ALPA for reaching a resolution prior to any significant disruptions.

“By averting a strike or lockout, you have demonstrated your commitment to supporting Canada’s vital travel and tourism economy. Your efforts to find a mutually beneficial solution are greatly appreciated by all those who rely on a stable and reliable aviation industry. Thank you for prioritizing the needs of your customers and the countless businesses that depend on your services,” ACTA wrote. 

A 42% pay increase

Air Canada’s tentative agreement will reportedly generate an approximate additional $1.9 billion in value for more than 5,200 pilots at the airline.

Terms of the tentative deal are expected to be completed over the next month and will require approval by the Air Canada Board of Directors, says the airline.

READ MORE: Post-crisis savings – Air Canada offering 25% off, bonus points, lounge vouchers

Ratification requires approval by a majority of the voting membership, who will soon receive the agreement for review. This being said, it’s still possible that the pilots could reject the agreement, which would restart the negotiating process. 

Some details of the deal have already been published by some media. According to the Globe and Mail, Air Canada’s pilots would receive cumulative raises of almost 42 per cent over four years.  

The ALPA had been pushing to narrow the pay gap with pilots at other Canadian and U.S. airlines, as well as scheduling changes that would allow pilots to make more and spend more time at home.

Air Canada previously offered a contract with raises of 30 per cent and improved work-life balances, and called the union’s pay demands “unrealistic.”

The tentative agreement replaces one reached 10 years ago that provided raises of two per cent annually.

Under the tentative deal, pilots would receive a 26 per cent raise retroactive to September of 2023, then four per cent raises in 2024, 2025 and 2026, the Globe is reporting.

In the second year of the deal, which begins on Sept. 30, 2024, a Boeing 737 captain, the most senior crew member, would be paid $280 to $312 an hour, depending on how many years they have been in that position.

A first officer on the same plane would start at $87 an hour, increasing to $207 if they have 12 years’ seniority, the Globe reports.

The new agreement would start hourly pay for a relief pilot, the most junior, on a wide-body plane at $87 an hour. The hourly pay for captains on wide-body planes would range from $317 to $424, depending on the aircraft.

“While it has been an exceptionally long road to this agreement, the consistent engagement and unified determination of our pilots have been the catalyst for achieving this contract,” said First Officer Charlene Hudy, chair of the Air Canada ALPA MEC, in a statement over the weekend. “After several consecutive weeks of intense round-the-clock negotiations, progress was made on several key issues including compensation, retirement, and work rules. This agreement, if ratified by the pilot group, would officially put an end to our outdated and stale decade-old, ten-year framework.”

The agreement stopped what would have been the latest in a string of labour disruptions impacting Canadian transportation in recent months, after a strike by WestJet mechanics in June and lockouts at Canadian Pacific Kansas City railway and Canadian National Railway last month.

Customers who used Air Canada’s labour disruption goodwill policy to change their flights originally scheduled from between September 15 and 23, 2024, to another date before November 30, 2024, can change their booking back to their original flight in the same cabin at no cost, providing there is space available.

Air Canada and Air Canada Rouge say they will continue to operate as normal. For more information, customers can click here.

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