Travel

Air Canada suspended all operations Saturday morning after more than 10,000 flight attendants walked off the job over pay and scheduling disputes, prompting the Canadian government to step in. Jobs and Families Minister Patty Hajdu has directed the Canada Industrial Relations Board to impose binding arbitration, extending the existing contract until a new agreement is reached.In a statement Saturday, Hajdu noted the strike’s impact on the Canadian economy, saying that Air Canada transports more than 40% of the country’s critical goods, including pharmaceuticals and organ tissue."This decision will help make sure that hundreds of thousands of Canadians and visitors to our country are not impacted because of canceled flights," Hajdu said.Wesley Lesosky, who heads the Air Canada Component ...

Air Canada said Sunday it has suspended its plan to resume limited flights after the union representing its flight attendants told members to defy a federal order to return to work. The airline now expects to restart operations Monday evening. The Canadian Industrial Relations Board directed Air Canada and Air Canada Rouge flight attendants to "resume their duties” by 2 p.m. ET Sunday after Jobs Minister Patty Hajdu imposed binding arbitration and extended the existing contract until a new agreement is reached.But the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) called the order "blatantly unconstitutional" and said its members "remain on strike.""We demand a fair, negotiated contract and to be compensated for all hours worked," CUPE's statement said. Air Canada said the union’s defiance f...

The Air Canada strike has ended after flight attendants reached a tentative agreement with the airline, both parties said early Tuesday."The Strike has ended," the Canadian Union of Public Employees said in a Facebook post advising its membership to "fully cooperate with resumption of operations." Air Canada said that it would gradually restart operations Tuesday but that a return to "full restoration may require a week or more.""The suspension of our service is extremely difficult for our customers," Air Canada President and CEO Michael Rousseau said in a statement. "We deeply regret and apologize for the impact on them of this labour disruption."Pilots show their support for Air Canada flight attendants striking at Montréal-Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport on Saturday.Andr...

The adage “time heals all wounds” is not holding true for Canadian travelers and their desire to vacation in America. Visits to the United States from Canada are down 25.2%, year to date, with a 37% year-over-year drop in arrivals by car in July alone, according to Tourism Economics. “Canadians were already concerned over their personal finances, but they’ve taken the rhetoric and policy announcements from the U.S. administration very personally,” said Amir Eylon, president and CEO of market research firm Longwoods International, which has been regularly surveying Canadian consumers. “Unfortunately, things have gone from bad to worse,” he added. A whopping 80% of Canadian travelers whose travel decisions are being influenced by U.S. policy and politics say U.S. tariffs and economic poli...

A cruise ship passenger is facing a federal charge after jumping overboard with thousands in cash on him this past weekend in Puerto Rico, after allegedly incurring about $16,000 in gambling losses on the high seas, federal prosecutors said. Jey Xander Omar Gonzalez-Diaz was arrested on Sunday after allegedly jumping off Royal Caribbean’s Rhapsody of the Seas when it docked in San Juan, according to a criminal complaint by Homeland Security Investigation special agent Gabriel Santiago.The passenger has been charged with allegedly failing to report the transport of monetary instruments over $10,000 from outside the United States. The complaint did not explicitly link Gonzalez-Diaz's decision to jump overboard with his alleged debt. Gonzalez-Diaz was fished out of the water by passersby o...

Southwest Airlines and its pilots’ union have reached a new preliminary labor agreement, ending months of tense negotiations and becoming the last of the largest U.S. airlines to strike a deal that is set to give aviators big raises.The five-year deal is worth about $12 billion, Casey Murray, president of the Southwest Airlines Pilots Association, told CNBC on Tuesday. The union didn’t immediately provide details about pilot pay increases.The company’s pilots will need to approve the preliminary contract. CNBC reported earlier this month that the two sides were close to a deal.American, United and Delta pilots finalized deals earlier this year that were worth billions and gave aviators double-digit pay hikes. The Covid-19 pandemic derailed negotiations across the industry.As travel dema...