Does someone here know how Canadian law applies to the Air Canada strike?

[unicorn]

I keep hearing/reading that the biggest sticking point seems to be that Air Canada doesn't pay workers for the work they're required to do before and after the planes are in the air. I can't imagine that this could be legal in the US, since the US Constitution plainly forbids unpaid work (with the exception of jury duty, I suppose). Does Canadian law, or whatever equivalent there is in terms of a Constitution, not forbid involuntary servitude? What's the legal basis for Air Canada forcing their workers to perform unpaid tasks? Clearly, much work needs to be done before and after the planes are actually in the air.

https://apnews.com/article/air-canada-flight-attendants-illegal-strike-eca99afe8651b9bf64acd708ae987f5f

"...Air Canada and CUPE have been in contract talks for about eight months, but remain far apart on the issue of pay and the unpaid work that flight attendants do when planes aren’t in the air...". 

https://www.reuters.com/business/world-at-work/air-canada-union-chief-prefers-jail-being-forced-end-cabin-crew-strike-2025-08-18/

"...The flight attendants, who are pushing for a negotiated contract, are striking for wages similar to those earned by cabin crews at Canadian carrier Air Transat (TRZ.TO), opens new tab, and to be fully paid for work on the ground, such as boarding passengers...". 

 

[vinapu]

1 hour ago, unicorn said:

Clearly, much work needs to be done before and after the planes are actually in the air.

 

although not much of that is done by actual cabin personnel. Did you ever saw  person checking you in or boarding you and then being an actual stewardess on the flight ? And after landing often cabin crew walks to an immigration right after last passenger . I know because I like to fly in the back and often I'm that last one. 

My understanding is their beef is  not as much as about unpaid actual work by rather requirement to report for duty some time before flight to attend some pre-flight brief and not being paid for it. That is certainly not unique to Air Canada as I hear stewardesses in one of European airlines complaining about the same . I'd not be surprised if some US airlines may have the same policy. 

I'm not defending AC nor criticizing workers as at end of day all bolds down to pay level, whether it is for time in the air only or from such and such point of time  before and after boarding it can be easily negotiated.

as they say in Eswatini ' if we don't know what they are talking about , if must be about money"

[Keithambrose]

1 hour ago, vinapu said:

although not much of that is done by actual cabin personnel. Did you ever saw  person checking you in or boarding you and then being an actual stewardess on the flight ? And after landing often cabin crew walks to an immigration right after last passenger . I know because I like to fly in the back and often I'm that last one. 

My understanding is their beef is  not as much as about unpaid actual work by rather requirement to report for duty some time before flight to attend some pre-flight brief and not being paid for it. That is certainly not unique to Air Canada as I hear stewardesses in one of European airlines complaining about the same . I'd not be surprised if some US airlines may have the same policy. 

I'm not defending AC nor criticizing workers as at end of day all bolds down to pay level, whether it is for time in the air only or from such and such point of time  before and after boarding it can be easily negotiated.

as they say in Eswatini ' if we don't know what they are talking about , if must be about money"

Eswatini,  eh. Impressive! Can we assume that @Olddaddy certainly  doesn't know where that is!

[unicorn]

2 hours ago, vinapu said:

...requirement to report for duty some time before flight to attend some pre-flight brief and not being paid for it...

It seems to me that the time they're required to report to work should be the time they start getting paid (assuming it's required). This reminds me of when I was working as a government physician. We had mandatory weekly meetings at noon, which were off the clock, but for which sandwiches were brought down, so that we could attend to the meetings promptly after our last morning patients. Someone was *shocked* that the government was buying rich physicians sandwiches, so those got cut out. Well, since we were off the clock, we just went out for lunch instead. In the end, they ended up having to cut the last two patients off of our roster, so that we'd have time to get or prepare lunch, then paid us for the hour of the weekly noontime meeting. The savings of the cost of the sandwich ended up costing 100X more. 

[unicorn]

[vinapu]

3 hours ago, unicorn said:

The savings of the cost of the sandwich ended up costing 100X more. 

 

those are greedy corporations for you

[vinapu]

1 hour ago, unicorn said:

on more serious note I must say I don't mind contemporary practice of airlines nickeling and diming us for this or that, good excuse to carry as little  luggage as possible .

In so called 'good old days' they were overfeeding us too, now I rarely buy anything to eat aboard but tea or coffee, yes   

[PeterRS]

I spent part of my early career in broadcasting with the BBC in London. Those working on a programme had to be in the studio 15 minutes prior to the start of working on the programme even though there might be little actual work to do. We were warned on the first day of training that if we were late once, we would  be put on a final warning. Be late twice and we'd be dismissed. On the other hand, we were always paid for those 15 minutes.

[Connordrick]

This morning, NY 1 reported that the AC strike is over. I hope so, because I need the flights to keep happening. This Labor weekend, I have a very important business meeting at Stock Bar and daily meetings at Campus Bar 🤪. I have a lot of Bjobs that I need to attend. Iam checking Taboo too  

I will report in the other forum since here, I don’t see any suitable thread. 

[unicorn]

According to the New York Times, "The reason Air Canada restarted talks with the union was not immediately clear. But on Monday, Patty Hajdu, the labor minister, said that she had started an investigation into the issue of unpaid work by flight attendants while the plane was on the ground. In an interview with CBC News, she called the issue “deeply disturbing.”" So maybe slavery is, in fact, illegal in Canada. 

[unicorn]

I asked AI, and it seems as though there is no specific prohibition against slavery in Canada, although it seems to be illegal in practice:

AI overview:

 

Canada's Constitution doesn't directly mention slavery, but it has strong protections against it and similar practices. 

Here's why:

• British Empire's Abolition: Canada was part of the British Empire when the British Parliament abolished slavery in most parts of the Empire in 1833.
• Early Canadian Legislation: Upper Canada (now Ontario) passed the Act Against Slavery in 1793, which was among the first anti-slavery laws in the world. This law, while not immediately freeing existing slaves, prevented the further introduction of slaves and stipulated that children born to enslaved women would be freed upon reaching the age of 25.
• Judicial Decisions: In the early 19th century, Canadian courts, particularly in Lower Canada and Nova Scotia, made decisions that effectively limited the enforceability of slavery.
• Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms: While not explicitly mentioning slavery, the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, which is part of the Constitution, protects fundamental human rights like life, liberty, and security of the person, according to the Canadian Human Rights Commission. These rights are incompatible with slavery.
• International Commitments: Canada has also ratified international conventions that explicitly prohibit slavery and forced labor, such as the Convention to Suppress the Slave Trade and Slavery.
• Modern Laws: Additionally, Canada has enacted legislation like the Fighting Against Forced Labour and Child Labour in Supply Chains Act, which aims to combat modern forms of slavery within supply chains. This Act mandates that companies operating in Canada disclose their efforts to eliminate modern slavery from their supply chains. 

I don't suppose that Canada is still subject to British laws, so the British law abolishing slavery wouldn't still apply to Canada. I looked up the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and that's dated 1982! As for the Fighting Against Forced Labour and Child Labour in Supply Chains Act, that didn't come into effect until 1/1/24, presumably after the last Air Canada contracts were ratified. So Canada only formally began forbidding slavery in 2024, and is still dealing with that fact?