TORONTO — Air Canada said Tuesday it will gradually restart operations after reaching an agreement with the union for 10,000 flight attendants to end a strike.
The union first announced the agreement early Tuesday after Air Canada and the union resumed talks late Monday for the first time since the strike began over the weekend. The strike is affecting about 130,000 travelers a day at the peak of the summer travel season.
Canada’s largest airline said flights will start resuming Tuesday evening.
The union said the agreement will guarantee members pay for work performed while planes are on the ground, resolving one of the major issues that drove the strike.
“Unpaid work is over. We have reclaimed our voice and our power,” the union said in a statement. “When our rights were taken away, we stood strong, we fought back — and we secured a tentative agreement that our members can vote on.”
Chief executive Michael Rousseau said restarting a major carrier is a complex undertaking and said regular service may require seven to 10 days. Some flights will be canceled until the schedule is stabilized.
“Full restoration may require a week or more, so we ask for our customers’ patience and understanding over the coming days,” Rousseau said in a statement.
The airline said mediation discussions “were begun on the basis that the union commit to have the airline’s 10,000 flight attendants i