CUPE issues 72-hour strike notice to Flair Airlines

The union that represents 139 flight attendants who work for the Kelowna based carrier Flair Airlines has issued a 72-hour strike notice.

The Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) has filed the notice for Local 4060, following a mediated session on Dec. 5 with the employer. CUPE says that the two sides failed to reach an agreement over outstanding items including wages and pension as well as time credits and scheduling issues.

According to CUPE, the 139 flight attendants work from bases in Kelowna, Abbotsford, Calgary, Edmonton, and Toronto.

“For the past several weeks, this employer has steadfastly refused to step away from its position of two-tier wages and benefits, which is fundamentally unfair,” said CUPE National Representative Gary Yee, who represents CUPE 4060 at the bargaining table.

“Flair is transparently engaging in a divide and conquer strategy aimed at driving a wedge between workers in order to compete with other ultra-low-cost carriers. It is completely unfair to pay one group of flight attendants 30 per cent less for doing the same work as other flight attendants.”

The 72-hour-strike notice expires at midnight on Dec. 10, putting the local in a legal strike position, says CUPE.