Federal workers intensified their strike seeking hike in wages

Ottawa: Federal workers have intensified their strike after flight attendants from across Canada took part in the rally held on Tuesday. These flight attendants demand that they should also be paid when they are at work.

Unlike other professions, flight attendants do not get paid when they start their shift but are paid from the time the aircraft is preparing to take off and after the flight reaches its destination. The union leading the flight attendants says they spend almost a week every month without pay.

“When they report before work, as if they have a report time at 8:00 a.m., they’re briefing before the flight, doing more safety checks, preparing for catering, they don’t get paid,” said Rena Kisfaalvi, a flight attendant. When the plane lands and the passengers are disembarking from the plane, they do not even get paid for that time. If there is a medical problem and they have to stay there for help, they do not even get paid for it.

“They have to undergo annual training as safety professionals,” said Fred Hahn, president of Cope Ontario. But even for this compulsory training, which is a quarterly in total, they don’t get any money. Kisfalvi said that flight attendants have to take care of the passengers in addition to giving them food items, but they do not come in any number.

The union wants the federal government to take action in this regard and big airlines should also work in this direction. For this, the union has also launched an awareness campaign.