After a few weeks of uncertainty, the cleaver fell: Air Canada online agents will be on strike on Saturday if an agreement is not found in the meantime. What if you had planned a getaway in August with the airline?
Here is everything you need to know about the situation, and some tips for saving your trip.
When will the strike take place?
The strike will start on Saturday August 16, although the airline replied by announcing a lockout to alleviate the repercussions of the strike on customers, which will result in a gradual cancellation of its flights on August 14.
No less than 130,000 customers will be assigned each day of strike, the company said. It is not yet clear for how long the flights will be affected.
The strike could be triggered anywhere from August 16, with a notice of 72 hours.
Why a strike?
These threats of strike occur while the collective agreement of Air Canada on -board agents, signed for 10 years, has arrived in the long term.
The more than 10,000 company on -board agents are now claiming a higher salary and better working conditions, who often work for long hours.
According to the Canadian Public Service Syndicate (SCFP), which represents them, the stagnation of their salary, combined with inflation, has considerably decreased their purchasing power in recent years.
Already tickets: what will happen?
The airline has announced a full reimbursement of tickets to customers who will be affected by cancellations, and plans to offer spare options thanks to agreements with other carriers, she announced on Wednesday morning.
However, the strong traffic at airports could upset the plans of many travelers, who may not be able to benefit from spare options immediately.
This short notice could thus limit the options and not be suitable for those who have, for example, reserved a cruise whose departure is planned at a specific time, said Jacob Charbonneau, president of late flight.ca, last week.
Other travelers who are already abroad could see their return being offset, which could cause additional costs in food and hotel costs if the date is pushed by a few days.
How to save your trip: some tips
To avoid spoiling your vacation, it is advised:
1- Be proactive
As soon as you learn that your flight is canceled or if there is a chance that it is, it will be necessary to think of a “plan B” to avoid being too affected by the strike.
You could thus browse the spare offers offered online by other companies to find the one that would limit the effects of the strike as much as possible on your trip, if you had already reserved a cruise or a hotel.
Regularly check the status of your flight on the Air Canada site.
2- Contact your travel agency
If you are one of those who have reserved their holidays via a travel agency, contact it to find out the options available to you.
Note that those who have done business with a Quebec agency should be eligible for a refund by the customer compensation fund for travel agents [FICAV]said last week Charles Tanguay, of the Consumer Protection Office (OPC).
3- Contact the hotel or your cruise line
Your hotel or cruise company may have its own policy in the event of flight cancellation; It is worth making a jump on your website or directly contacting a manager to find out the options available to you.
4- Check your travel insurance
Check if you do not already have travel insurance without knowing it, through, for example, your collective insurance insurance or your credit card.
If you benefit from travel insurance that covers the flight cancellations, check the content as well as the application conditions to see if this could allow a reimbursement of your hotel or your cruise.
5- Take a try on the side of your credit card
If this is not the case, you can also try to get a retrofing on the side of your credit card, but this will vary greatly depending on your conditions of use.
Especially since the Cruise Hotel or Company are not responsible in the event of a carrier’s strike.