By Allison Lampert
MONTREAL (Reuters) -Air Canada said on Tuesday it has asked the federal government for a referral to binding arbitration on its contract talks with the flight attendants union, after the airline declared an impasse in the negotiations.
Earlier in the day, the Canadian Union of Public Employees, which represents more than 10,000 flight attendants, rejected the airline's proposal for binding arbitration, arguing it wants a negotiated settlement.
Flight attendants, who demonstrated on Monday
at major Canadian airport hubs, could strike as early as August 16, after giving 72 hours notice.
Higher wages and ending the current practice of paying flight attendants only when the plane is in motion are key issues in the contract talks. Flight attendants at certain U.S. carriers have made some gains in recent contracts.
The union said Air Canada has offered to begin compensating flight attendants for some work that is currently unpaid but only at 50% of their hourly rate.
Air Canada said in a news release it believes the talks are at an impasse after the union made a counteroffer seeking exorbitant increases, beyond those presented in earlier submissions.
“We are disappointed our proposal to resolve the outstanding items fairly through arbitration has been rejected by the union and it is instead insisting on unsustainable wage increases," said Arielle Meloul-Wechsler, chief human resources officer at Air Canada.
Union representatives were not immediately available to comment.
(Reporting by Allison Lampert in Montreal; Editing by Cynthia Osterman and Lisa Shumaker)
