Montreal — Canadian Airbus A220 production workers on Sunday voted against a contract and are thinking about a strike mandate, strike a union official said, escalating labor tensions as the European aircraft manufacturer tries to cut costs for its money-losing jet.
Over 99 per cent of the union members who voted turned down the contract, the union official stated.
The approximately 1,300 workers in the Montreal area, represented by the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) in Quebec, are deciding on whether to authorize a strike.
While a mandate doesn't mean an actual strike will happen, the vote indicates dissatisfaction among the workers who build Airbus's smallest commercial jet.
Earlier this month, union negotiators in Montreal called the offer hostile and said it should have consequences in a letter to members written in French.
The union's contract expired in December.
In recent times, unions have taken advantage of high demand for labor and inflation to secure substantial contracts at the bargaining table, resulting in significant pay raises for airline pilots, autoworkers, and others in 2023.
Boeing's unionized production workers in Washington state have requested wage increases of more than 40 per cent over the next three to four years.
