Air Canada will resume service ASAP — but more delays and cancellations are coming

If you're flying with Air Canada this week, there's some good news as flights are gradually resuming after days of chaos.

A labour dispute between the airline and its flight attendants brought travel to a standstill, forcing the cancellation of thousands of flights and leaving hundreds of thousands of passengers stranded nationwide.

Vacations and work trips were thrown into disarray, and customers claimed that it was difficult to get direct support from the airline due to the high volume of calls.

The disruption began on Wednesday, August 13, when Air Canada issued a 72-hour lockout notice to the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), which represents roughly 10,000 flight attendants at Air Canada and Air Canada Rouge.

The move followed CUPE's own strike notice, citing low pay and poor working conditions. Talks collapsed after the airline pushed for an independent mediator, triggering a phased shutdown of flights that culminated in a complete halt to mainline and Rouge service by Saturday, the first official day of the strike.

That same morning, the federal government stepped in. Jobs and Families Minister Patty Hajdu invoked Section 107 of the Labour Code, forcing both sides into binding arbitration, a decision CUPE slammed as a "betrayal." Flight attendants continued to picket in defiance, while Air Canada branded the walkout "illegal."

By Tuesday, however, the stalemate had broken. A mediated agreement was reached that will see the airline's 10,000 flight attendants return to work immediately. Air Canada announced that its first flights will depart on Tuesday evening. However, it may take up to 10 days for operations to fully stabilize.

"During this process, some flights will be cancelled over the next seven to ten days until the schedule is stabilized," the airline said in a statement.

CUPE states that the agreement has brought about "transformational change" for the industry.

"Unpaid work is over," they said in a statement on Tuesday morning. "We have reclaimed our voice and our power. When our rights were taken away, we stood strong, we fought back — and we secured a tentative agreement that our members can vote on."

Travellers are still being urged not to head to the airport unless their booking is confirmed and their flight is listed as operating, which can be checked on Air Canada's website or mobile app.

For cancelled trips, passengers can request a refund, receive a credit for future travel, or be rebooked on another airline, provided seats are available. However, space remains tight during the peak summer season.

This is a developing story. Check back for more details.

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