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“We are incredibly happy and proud of this,” the longtime flight attendant said. “Not only do we have a high strike vote but also an incredibly high membership participation,” with 94.6 per cent of unit members participating in the strike mandate vote.

“We go to the bargaining table armed with this on Friday.”

More than 10,000 flight attendants will be in a legal strike position Aug. 16 and could walk off the job as long as the union has given Air Canada 72 hours notice of a work stoppage, Lesosky added, noting that the main bargaining issue will be wages including a rule that the workers get paid only for time in flight.

Asked what he says to people planning to fly on Air Canada and worried about possible strike-related cancellations, he replied: “I think this is a strong strike mandate not only for the union but also for the company to recognize.

“The company needs to see that ‘Hey, the employees are banding together, they are united.’ I’ve been with Air Canada for almost 25 years, and this is a strong, strong turnout, so hopefully (Air Canada managers) look at it, they see it, and they come to the table to come up with a tentative agreement and avoid any kind of job action.”

In a statement posted Tuesday, Air Canada called the vote results “a normal step in the negotiation process and does not mean that any disruption will take place.

“Air Canada remains committed to the bargaining process and is eager to resume discussions, which CUPE had suspended during the vote,” the airline said, adding it is “determined to reach a fair and equitable collective agreement that recognizes the contributions of its flight attendants and supports the competitiveness and long-term growth of the company.

“Air Canada firmly believes that there is more than enough time to reach such an agreement and avoid disrupting the plans of hundreds of thousands of travellers.”

Air Canada’s statement did not address the union’s wage concerns.

The strike mandate vote, which began July 28, comes after the union ended the conciliation process with no deal reached. The union has been in contract talks since the start of the year.

The current agreement has not been updated since 2015.

The flight attendants’ endorsement of a possible strike “is almost unanimous,” notedÌýSteven Tufts, an associate professor specializing in labour at York University.

“With a unit of that size, that is unprecedented — I can’t think of another getting that kind of mandate,” Tufts said, adding the fact that the workers haven’t received a new contract in a decade is a likely factor.

“They’ll want their union to make up for lost ground in a decade in which the industry has changed and which also included the pandemic.”

CUPE’s battle to get flight attendants paid for time not in the sky, such as waiting on the tarmac or in an airport during delays, is part of a global campaign by airline workers to be compensated more fairly, he added.Ìý

The union has said that despite sustained efforts, including in the conciliation process with a federally appointed mediator, key issues including pay, unpaid work and pensions remain unresolved.

“Very low or poverty wages” is top of mind in negotiations, said Lesosky, adding employees have seen a two per cent wage increase each year, which does not align with current costs of living or inflation. Lesosky said there was no wage increase this year due to ongoing labour disputes.Ìý

“An entry-level flight attendant currently starts out at $1,952 a month, pre-tax,” said Lesosky. “That’s less than the federal minimum wage, and clearly not enough to live on,” he added, saying flight attendants are often stationed in major cities like Montreal, É«É«À², Vancouver and Calgary where costs of living are higher.

Flight attendants are not paid for their work on a plane while it is at a gate prior to takeoff, if there is a red alert at the gate meaning the plane cannot take off due to dangerous weather, or when tending to passenger medical emergencies on the ground,Ìýaccording toÌýLesosky.

David Doorey, associate professor of work law at York University, said before release of the vote results that he expected a strong mandate to strike. “Usually, workers vote overwhelmingly in favour of a strike in order to send a strong signal to the employer in negotiations.”

But a vote to strike does not necessarily mean a strikeÌý— or that disruptions to customers can be expected.

“A strike vote does not mean there will be a strike, just that a strike is a possibility if no deal is reached. A strong strike vote raises the stakes in negotiations and often helps the parties focus on getting a deal,” Doorey said.

While contract negotiations could affect Air Canada’s main operations and Air Canada Rouge flights, flight attendants working for Jazz and PAL, which operate Air Canada Express flights, are not affected by the negotiations or strike vote.Ìý