Air Transat flight attendants vote to strike

MONTREAL - Air Transat (TSX:TRZ.A) flight attendants have given their union a strike mandate.

They have also rejected the latest offer from the airline by 95 per cent, CUPE said in a release Thursday night.

That means the flight attendants could launch a strike at any time after July 19.

Union representatives said they hope to negotiate an agreement and avoid a labour dispute.

New bargaining sessions will take place next Tuesday and Thursday.

On April 21, the union asked the Ministry of Labour to appoint a conciliator to assist in the negotiations and eight days later a 60-day conciliation period began.

If no agreement is reached, it will be followed by another 21-day period, and finally, if there is still no agreement, the two parties may resort to a strike or a lockout, as of July 20.

"Air Transat has continued to ask for cuts that simply are not justified by its financial situation," Nathalie Stringer, president of the Air Transat Component of the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), said in the release.

"We certainly do not want to disrupt the operations of the company this summer and we are focused on negotiating a settlement as quickly as possible."

"Our members are sending a clear message. They want a pension plan that will allow them to grow older with dignity."

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