Air Canada flight attendants on the picket line last month. Photo courtesy CUPE.

Last month’s strike at Air Canada, which saw flight attendants defiantly walking the picket lines, struck a chord with trade unionists and social movement activists all across the country and beyond. Clearly, there are important lessons to be drawn from this fight that aren’t limited to the concerns of these particular workers.

Others who are losing ground in terms of wages and working conditions, and who face intransigent employers and, in some cases, live with the threat of back-to-work measures, looked to this inspiring display of courage with a sense of joy and hope. Yet, the final result is very far from a clear-cut victory and we need to draw up a balance sheet of the struggle that neither disregards its positive aspects nor neglects the negative elements.

There is no disputing that the approximately 10,000 Air Canada flight attendants represented by the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) had enormous and very legitimate grievances. Speaking shortly before the strike got underway, Wesley Lesosky, president of CUPE’s Air Canada component, condemned the fact that “Our union offices in Vancouver and Toronto have had to open food banks to support our newest members as they struggle to house and feed themselves while working full-time. We still have members living out of their cars at our Vancouver base.”

Lesosky also pointed out that “junior Air Canada flight attendants working full-time currently earn $1,952 per month before taxes, well below the federal minimum wage for a full-time worker of $2,840.” Moreover, Air Canada’s (then latest) offer “would still put junior flight attendants below the federal minimum wage, with monthly earnings of $2,108.”

As the confrontation unfolded, a great deal of public attention was also focused on the scandalous situation whereby “flight attendants are forced to complete ground duties ranging from pre-flight safety checks to boarding, deplaning and attending to medical and safety emergencies while being paid only for time spent in the air.”

Despite the fact that Air Canada’s role as an exceptionally exploitative employer is easy to demonstrate, the readiness of Mark Carney’s Liberal government to come to the company’s aid—in this instance with the........

© Canadian Dimension