Air Canada and flight attendants begin arbitration process to settle wages

Air Canada Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft sit parked at Vancouver International Airport, in Richmond, B.C., on Monday, August 18, 2025. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck

VANCOUVER — Air Canada and its flight attendants have begun an arbitration process to settle wages under their deal reached last year to end a strike that halted flights around the world.

The Air Canada Component of the Canadian Union of Public Employees says the flight attendants voted over 99 per cent to reject Air Canada’s final wage offer in September 2025.

However, the union and the airline agreed at the time that the wage issue would be referred first to mediation and then, if no deal was reached, to arbitration.

More than 10,000 Air Canada flight attendants went on strike in August 2025.

The job action forced the airline to cancel flights during the busy summer season and disrupted the plans of thousands of travellers.

A large portion of the contract terms such as those setting out rules for pensions, health benefits and vacation — are already considered final, as agreed to by both Air Canada and the union.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 20, 2026.