Wed Aug 20 01:00:11 UTC 2025: Okay, here’s a summary of the provided text followed by a news article written from it, suitable for a broad Indian audience, potentially published in “The Hindu,” considering its listed newsletters.
**Summary:**
Air Canada’s flight attendants’ union, CUPE, ended a four-day strike on August 19, 2025, after reaching a tentative agreement with the airline. The strike, the first in 40 years, caused widespread flight cancellations and disruption. The key issue was “ground pay” – compensation for tasks performed while boarding passengers. The agreement includes pay for this work. While some flights will still be cancelled for the next week or so as operations stabilize, Air Canada is working to rebook passengers. The Canadian government had intervened, promising an investigation into unpaid work practices in the airline industry.
**News Article:**
**Air Canada Strike Ends, Flights Gradually Resuming After Agreement Reached**
*Montreal/Toronto, August 20, 2025* – Travel chaos for hundreds of thousands of passengers is beginning to ease as Air Canada’s unionized flight attendants ended their strike on Tuesday, August 19, 2025, after reaching a tentative agreement with the airline. The four-day strike, the first of its kind in four decades, had grounded flights and forced the airline to withdraw its earnings guidance.
The Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), representing 10,400 flight attendants, announced the end of the strike on social media, stating, “The Strike has ended. We have a tentative agreement we will bring forward to you.”
The key sticking point in negotiations was compensation for “ground work,” specifically tasks performed while passengers are boarding. “Ground pay is settled,” Air Canada Executive Vice-President Mark Nasr confirmed. “Our flight attendants will be compensated for their time on the ground.” This reflects a growing trend among airline unions seeking fair compensation for all work performed, following gains made by unions in the United States.
Air Canada has warned that some flights will still be cancelled over the next week to ten days as it works to stabilize its schedule. Passengers affected by cancellations are being offered refunds, travel credits, or rebooking options, including on other airlines.
The Canadian government, under pressure to resolve the situation, had intervened, with Jobs Minister Patty Hajdu promising an investigation into allegations of unpaid work in the airline sector. This probe is expected to take six to eight weeks.
The strike highlighted broader labor tensions in Canada, where unions across several sectors, including aerospace, construction, airline and rail, have been pushing for higher pay and better working conditions in a tight labor market. While many passengers supported the flight attendants’ demands, frustration was growing due to widespread flight disruptions.
The resolution of the Air Canada strike offers a sense of relief to stranded passengers. For Indian travelers connecting through Canada, it means a return to more predictable flight schedules in the coming weeks.
First Piper 