Air Canada pilots ratify labor deal, avoiding strike

By Allison Lampert and Rajesh Kumar Singh

MONTREAL/CHICAGO (Reuters) -Air Canada pilots have voted to ratify a new four-year labor deal with the country's largest carrier, the union said on Thursday, eliminating the risk of work stoppages despite concerns by some members about pay for entry level aviators.

The agreement received 67% votes in favor, said the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA), which represents the workers.

The deal, which runs retroactively from Sept. 30, 2023 until Sept. 29, 2027, would give pilots a general four-year cumulative rate increase of about 42%, generating approximately C$1.9 billion in additional value, according to an executive summary of the deal seen by Reuters.

"We look forward to working under these improved pay rates and working conditions," said Charlene Hudy, chair of the Air Canada ALPA Master Executive Council in a statement.

But the contract does not increase wages at the same rate across all categories. According to a copy of the draft deal seen by Reuters, a newly hired Air Canada first officer who flies a 737 MAX jet would have just a C$3.36 increase in 2024 versus 2023. Over the course of the deal, however, his or her wages would rise by 62%.

Still, newly hired first officers for MAX aircraft at U.S. carrier United Airlines would make 82% more in Canadian dollars than their counterparts at Air Canada, according to copies of the two agreements.

Pilots were demanding wages that would narrow that pay gap with their American counterparts over the course of the negotiations during the last 15 months.

Air Canada averted a strike in September by reaching a last-minute deal with the union, which represents more than 5,200 of its pilots. But the tentative agreement was widely criticized by pilots on social media and even within the union local.

One committee member in the local quit his post, citing a "fundamental disagreement" with the direction taken by the union in presenting the agreement to members, according to a resignation letter seen by Reuters.

In a post on social media platform X, Air Canada said it welcomed the vote.

While Air Canada has resolved its dispute with pilots, the airline is expected to begin negotiations with its flight attendants early next year, the union representing cabin crew said this fall.

Flight attendants in the U.S. and Canada are pressing for fundamental changes in the way the airline industry has been treating and compensating them. In particular, they want to end the practice of "free work" in new contracts and be paid for their time during boarding and deboarding, and waiting around the airport before and between flights.

(Reporting by Allison Lampert in Montreal, Rajesh Kumar Singh in Chicago and Aatreyee Dasgupta in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D'Silva and Aurora Ellis)