Minnesota travelers in Canada are dealing with headaches over airline strike

Minnesota travelers in Canada are dealing with headaches over airline strike

Minnesota travelers in Canada are dealing with headaches over airline strike

Our neighboring country’s largest airline halted operations early today due to a flight attendant strike. More than 10,0000 workers walked off the job.

“Some tense moments and non sleeping times because we’re trying to figure out how to get home,” said Micki Smith of Little Canada.

Smith told WCCO this week has been a travel headache for her and her husband, who’ve been in Nova Scotia for a wedding. They received a text from the airline they booked round-trip with, saying their flight from Halifax to Toronto, where they’ll catch a connecting flight to Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport, is canceled and can’t be rebooked.

“When we were in Cape Breton we turned on the news and saw the potential strike, and thought ‘oh no’,” Smith told WCCO.

That strike was the reason for its cancelation. On Thursday, Air Canada started to cut weekend flights as the strike loomed, which ended up happening Saturday morning by nearly 10,000 flight attendants represented by the Canadian Union of Public Employees. That’s until the Canadian government stepped in, forcing them to go back to work.

“There was a picket line at the airport,” said Mark Fenton, who arrived to MSP from Toronto on Saturday.

All Air Canada flights departing and arriving from MSP on Saturday were operated by a regional partner. Those flight attendants aren’t taking part of the strike as they’re represented by a different union. Most travelers coming to/from Minnesota using the airline say the layovers in Canada are what’s messing up their plans.

“I’ve booked another flight from Minneapolis to Heathrow with an expectation that my Toronto flight has been canceled,” said Fenton.

Something that Smith did too, having to miss work early next week.

Those flight attendants are asking to be paid for their work before and after a flight. Right now, they’re only paid for takeoff to touchdown.

WCCO reached out to Air Canada and the union for comment and haven’t heard back.