The Decibel - The traveller’s guide to Canadian airline disruptions

Episode Date: December 10, 2025

Hours before a strike deadline, Air Transat and the union representing airline pilots reached a tentative agreement. For customers, it comes as relief in the middle of a busy holiday travel season. And in a year already wracked by airline work stoppages, the threat of disruption and lengthy customer reimbursement periods continue to loom.Mariya Postelnyak, The Globe’s Consumer Affairs reporter, speaks about what you need to know as a traveller, what’s afforded in air passenger protections, and how to get what you’re owed if your flights get cancelled.Questions? Comments? Ideas? Email us at [e-mail] Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

The busy holiday travel season is here, and a lot of Canadians will be flying, or at least trying to. On Tuesday, Air Transat began canceling flights across the country, ahead of a potential Wednesday strike by its 750 pilots. And while that strike was averted on Tuesday night, when the Union and the Montreal-based airline reached a tentative agreement, Canadian travelers are still dealing with stressful and costly flight cancellations and disruptions, of it. If this feels like deja vu, it's because it is. This labor dispute is the second upend travel for Canadians in the past six months. Back in August, thousands were left stranded and struggled to get rebooked and refunded when our Canada's flight attendants went on strike. And it could happen again soon. WestJet's contract with their flight attendants is set to

expire December 31st. So what can travelers do about this? And why is this happening so often? Today, the Globe's Consumer Affairs reporter, Maria Pascelniak, is here. She's been looking into labor disruptions at Canadian Airlines, and she'll tell us what you're entitled to when your flight is canceled and how to actually get what you're owed. I'm Cheryl Sutherland, and this is the decibel from the Globe and Mail. Hi, Maria, thanks so much for joining us. Thanks so much for having me.

So, Maria, we're talking on Tuesday before we know whether the strike is going to happen. But either way, there are cancellations and knock-on effects because of it. So we're going to try and help people understand the situation because it's relevant if you're flying with any Canadian airline. First off, something that airlines do, including Air Transat, is they cancel flights even before a strike starts. Why do they do that? Yeah, so airlines, they often begin shutting down operations ahead of a strike, a work stoppage, to sort of avoid having passengers and crew and aircraft stranded in the wrong places once the strike actually does begin. In this case, though, it wasn't entirely clear whether Air Transcendat had formally canceled flights when it first made that announcement.

Data we were watching didn't yet show official cancellations as of last night, but we are seeing those cancellations start to trickle in this morning on Tuesday. Overall, I guess the intention is operational. So having a controlled sort of wind down rather than a chaotic one. So the idea basically is like, you know, they don't want to fly anyone out of. say Toronto or Montreal and then have them stranded in Cancun because they can't fly them back because of a strike. Exactly. But the downside, of course, is that it can leave travelers stuck at their destination. It can leave them in limbo. And right now, the timing really could have been worse. It's right before the holiday rush. Yeah, absolutely. Yeah, I bet many people are probably very

nervous about their flights being canceled at this point. How will travelers know if their flight is getting canceled? So from what we've heard from Air Transit, as of now, a passenger will get an email directly if their specific flight has been canceled. And the airline says those passengers will automatically be refunded to the payment method on file. But in the meantime, they're sort of urging people to check their flight status. And I've heard from a lot of consumers who are just anxiously kind of refreshing the app, trying to reach out to air transit staff. And they're getting these generic responses, but their flights actually haven't been canceled.

So they're stuck in this kind of in-between space. If they do end up canceling their own flight preemptively, the airline might kind of get off the hook for certain things and responsibilities that it has under passenger protection rules. Okay, let's get into that because, you know, this, of course, can be a very stressful time for travelers. But what should people do in this situation? You know, should they sit tight or is canceling ahead of time

something that they should be thinking about? So to provide a little bit more context, Air transit actually introduced this short-term flexibility policy for people flying within the next five days. So basically lets travelers change or postpone their trip without extra fees. And you can submit this form on their website and they'll give you essentially a credit that's valid for 12 months. But here's the problem. If you cancel your own flight, you lose the rights that kick in when the airline cancels on its part. If you do want a safety net while waiting, one strategy,

that we've heard a few passengers use and it's worked for them is to actually book a fully refundable backup flight, something you can cancel within 24 hours with no penalty. And then if your original flight gets canceled, you can either take that refundable option or use it as proof when asking for a rebooking. Right. And so that's really interesting because now we're talking about, you know, not just air transit, this is kind of good information for any airline. And so what you said here is like you should probably buy a ticket that's refundable and then, you know, not to cancel your ticket that you already have. And that's interesting because sometimes those tickets, those refundable tickets, can be more expensive. Would you be able to get that money back if it's a more expensive

ticket? So if your flight is canceled, if it does end up being canceled, you are within your right to submit that new booking for reimbursement from the airline that cancels your flight. The problem is if air transit reach a resolution in the current kind of negotiations with their pilots union and your flight is back on, if you don't show up, you'll be considered a no-show, right? And they essentially won't refund you anything. But having that flexible, refundable fare with another carrier, it offers you that peace of mind. Yes, you're going to spend maybe an extra $50, $100, but it does offer you that kind of ability

to maneuver and change your plans on short notes. notice. And Maria, can you just lay out what rights Canadians have as passengers? Because there are rules that protect us across every airline, right? So Canada's air passenger protection rules are overseen by the Canadian Transportation Agency and are designed to protect anyone flying through or from and to Canada. Essentially, what the rules state in the case of a strike, if a flight is canceled, the airline's first obligation is to rebook the passenger on another flight within 48 hours. But here's the thing. So that rebooked flight, it can be one that operates, you know, with one of their own carriers, with an airline that they have a partnership with. But if that

rebooking is not possible, the airline must actually provide the passenger a choice of a refund or rebooking on any flight that includes a competitor. So if you're, you know, Air Transat, you would have to rebook someone on an Air Canada flight if there was a route or airfare that got them to their destination in a similar time window. The last thing to remember, though, is if the airline says a rebooking is impossible and only offers a refund, the passenger is still sort of within their right to push back to say that, I don't want to take this. refund, I want a rebooking, or they can purchase a new ticket from another airline and request reimbursement. But that's where things get a bit complicated and where the flaws in our passenger

protection system might come into play. Yeah, tell me a little bit more about that. Why do they get complicated? So if you have some kind of a grievance with an airline, say Air Transat, right, they cancel your flight. Last minute, you've lost money on hotels, on transportation, on Ubers and whatnot, and you, you file a claim with the airline. Even if you're within your right for everything that you've claimed, for the amount that you've claimed for reimbursement, if they push back, your only other recourse is to file a complaint with the Canadian Transportation Agency. And the Canadian Transportation Agency has a backlog of more than 80,000 claims, right? So you're kind of, you're going from one kind of place.

that stonewalls you to somewhere where you might need to wait months and sometimes more than a year for a resolution. Wow. Yeah. So even if we have these rights, it doesn't mean that you're going to get timely help here. Exactly. What about people who are not in Canada when this happens? Does what your owed change based on where you are? Yes, actually, it changes dramatically. Specifically, it changes if you're flying from or within. So this is important, not to, not to, but from or within the EU, the European Union, or the UK. So passengers flying from those two regions, they have much stronger protections. If their flight is cancelled, they're entitled not just to rebooking or a refund, but also to compensation.

And what compensation is, it's essentially a lump sum payment that an airline gives a passenger for the inconvenience of the disruption. This is above and beyond anything you might receive in terms. of a refund, if your flight is canceled, a rebooking or reimbursement. This is just an extra payment for inconvenience. And if you're flying from the EU specifically, that payment is usually between 250 and 600 euros, depending on the distance and different factors like that. Okay. So what about people stranded in Canada because of labor disruptions? Would they not get things like hotels or food covered? So passenger advocates, they'll argue that travelers should be reimbursed for those things, especially accommodations and meals during major disruptions.

And you can certainly try to claim that. You are technically within your right to claim that. But the reality is the precedent hasn't necessarily been super strong in Canada. Airlines often avoid paying those costs voluntarily. And when people take it up with the regulator, the Canadian Transportation Agency, the process can drag on for months, if not years, right? The Canadian transportation agency currently has a backlog of, I believe, the last figures that we have is more than 80,000 claims. Oh my goodness, it sounds like a lot. So, Maria, why is compensation so much better in places like Europe? So in Europe and in the UK, strikes by airline staff are actually considered within the airline's control. And what this means is that an airline

would actually have to pay compensation, which is this sort of lump sum payment above and beyond any refunds or reimbursements that you might be out as a passenger. In Canada, airline strikes are not actually considered a disruption that's within the airlines' control. And what ends up happening is that passengers are not entitled to that additional compensation, even though they might be experiencing the same inconvenience. Interesting. Okay. Have you heard any tips for those trying to get in touch with the airlines when this type of disruption happens? Like, I imagine it could be very hard to get someone on the phone right now. Well, this probably goes against every single airline will tell you, but going to the airport, although pretty tedious and, you know, that shouldn't be

what you have to do, but it often works best. At least that's what I found from talking to dozens of passengers who have been stuck or stranded across Canada. So if you go to the airport, you can't be put on hold. I mean, you can wait in line, but you'll usually speak to a person. People usually get answers a bit faster. And so if you're really kind of scrambling for options, that's one solution. And another tip, if you do get a chance to speak to someone, try to have an alternate flight, an alternate itinerary for that rebooking that you want already sort of ready for them to see. It's common for agents to say, you know, there are no options available and having something to show them, okay, there's this flight leaving from Montreal to Punta Cana at the exact time,

as my canceled flight, can you rebook me on this carrier? That I've seen people have a bit more success with when they actually bring that booking to the agent. What about this tip about possibly calling the French line? Some travelers have told me that by calling the French language line for their specific carrier, it can actually lead to shorter wait times. But with a Montreal-based carrier like Air Transat, that may not be as effective in this case,

or at least we don't have any evidence for now. We'll be right back. So, Maria, these are not the only Canadian airline workers talking about striking this year. In August, over 10,000 Air Canada flight attendants walked off the job, and West Jets' contract with flight attendants will expire on December 31st,

so there's a potential for a strike maybe in the new year. So this sounds like a lot of air travel disruption lately. But is this actually more than usual? Yeah, I mean, we've had two work stoppages in the last three or four months. We've had three significant strikes across airlines in five years, which I believe is more than we saw in the entire previous decade. So it does look like it's becoming a bit of a trend. And not just in aviation. I mean, we've seen that strikes in the broader transportation sector have also been going up.

Why is that? Why are we seeing more disruptions like this? So that's something that we're still reporting on, but what some of my early conversations suggests is that it's a mix of post-pandemic staffing strain. We have pay compression, and we also have workers comparing themselves to other striking groups who may be recently secured large raises or negotiated better working conditions, better wages. But one, I guess, big reason that people bring up is always having seen a lot of inflation.

after having maybe a decade of pretty low inflation, many countries experience, you know, sharp increases in living costs and housing costs, food, energy. So I think that workers are really kind of stepping up and voicing some of their concerns. Yeah. How likely is that that we'll see more of this type of disruption? I mean, based on the data so far, it's quite possible. Once there's one group that wins major concessions, it's something. sometimes tends to unfold in others. And as you mentioned, I mean, WestJet flight attendance contract

expires at the end of December, right? So there was a lot of public support for Air Canada flight attendants in August when they went on strike. Are we seeing the same kind of support for Air Transat pilots who are threatening to strike at this moment? No, I would say the tone online is noticeably different. Pilots earn far more than flight attendants. And that pay gap shapes, I think, public perception a lot. I mean, air transit has also said it offered pilots a 59% raise over five years. It also offered, I think, major improvements to working conditions. And the pilots union hasn't disclosed, or at least been as forthcoming with its exact demands. It does want a deal comparable to Air Canada's pilots. We recently secured quite substantial wage increases. But I would

say overall there's probably less public sympathy for the pilots at this time. Okay. Okay. If Westjet flight attendants go on strike soon, perhaps at December 31st, when their contract is up, is there any sense they'd receive support like those that Air Canada did, or could holiday travel stress get in the way? So when I try to find passengers to speak to for a lot of these stories, I scan social media. I try to read the conversations happening on Reddit on forums. And I mean, for me, it's becoming clear that the sympathy for striking workers specifically at airlines is really shrinking, particularly around the busy holiday seasons. So the fact that these work stoppages are happening at these really critical moments for

holidaymakers, for corporate travelers, for people just wanting to visit their family and, you know, connect over Christmas dinner, that's shrinking people's sympathy or leading some to lose. a lot of the empathy that they might have had for these kinds of movements in the past. So, you know with Air Canada, that's Canada's biggest airline and has over 30,000 employees. Air transit is much smaller with about 5,000 workers. Do we know what kind of effect work disruptions have at smaller airlines like Air Transit? Yeah. So what we know is that air transit is in a pretty, I guess, difficult, pretty fragile, financial position right now, right?

It's parent company, Transat AT. It's been struggling to reduce the debt it took on during the pandemic bailout. It lost, I think, $114 million last year and $25 million the year prior. You know, there was a bit of a return to profitability in September, and that was kind of spurred by higher fares and debt restructuring. But overall, the company is still under a lot of pressure. So a major disruption is a much heavier blow for a smaller airline. line right now. I guess air transit would argue that, you know, they can't pay pilots more money because

they are financially strained. They would argue that. But I think, as you can see, there's a lot of leverage that the pilots have right now at this moment as well. I mean, air transit definitely wants to get passengers back into the air. It wants to get its aircraft moving. So we see the wage shift on both sides. Right. And, you know, workers wanting to match wages at Air Canada. I mean, that's a much bigger airline. So you can understand why they'd want to match because, of course, you know, you want to get paid the same as another pilot might be getting paid, but, you know, it might be a bit difficult for a company like Air Transat to be able to do something like that. Exactly. But the hours they work are often just as long, and the strain is quite similar.

Right. Maria, the air travel situation in Canada, I can say, kind of sucks. Like, and flying more broadly is, I would say, like, not great right now. Flights are expensive. They nickel and dime you when it comes to baggage fees. And when there are issues like potential strikes, it seems impossible to get in touch with someone on the phone to get a refund or even to reschedule. So when it comes to passenger rights, is our system broken?

I think that many experts would say that the system, at the very least, is deeply flawed. The rules look strong on paper, but enforcement is often weak. Airlines routinely deny claims. I've spoken to many passengers who, you know, filed a complaint, filed for reimbursement, you know, their rights would suggest under Air Canada's passenger protection rules would suggest that they're owed that, you know, $500 for their

hotel or the $50 they spent on Uber's. And yet the airline just says, nope. And if you, if you want to continue that claim, go to the Canadian Transportation Agency where the backlog is 80,000 claims, right? Yeah. Have experts said what could fix this? I mean, the most common recommendations that we hear are shifting to sort of an EU-style compensation regime where payments are more automatic and they're not kind of disputed on a case-by-case basis. We also want to see more, I guess, meaningful penalties for non-compliance. Often it feels as if, you know, when an airline kind of doesn't fulfill its obligation under Canada's air passenger protection rules, there's kind of a slap on the wrist. So definitely more kind of, yeah, more meaningful penalties for airlines that break the rules. Speeding up the complaints process.

So improvements to the Canadian Transportation Agency and sort of the administrative internal processes and how they handle claims. And I think one of the biggest things that people talk about is also tightening the definition of what counts as outside the airlines control, which is really critical for a disruption like the one we're saying. with Air Transat. In Europe, these sorts of, as we mentioned before, these sorts of disruptions, passengers are just owed so much more. They have so many more protections. And it's quite reasonable to kind of expect for some of that to be introduced to Canada as well. So in the meantime, as we've discussed, Maria, that there could be more disruptions in the future. How should people approach booking in this environment? So I think there's two main things.

When you can and when you maybe foresee the possibility of a strike, so like something that we're anticipating now, perhaps with WestJet, book refundable or flexible fare, it's often worth the extra cost. Use credit cards or get a credit card if you can. That includes strong travel insurance protections. And, you know, if you're booking during a period of potential kind of labor, unrest, if there's a strike looming somewhere in the distance, plan for contingencies, know what alternate flights might be available.

And again, have that ready in case you need to kind of present that to the carrier for rebooking and generally avoid making non-refundable plans, whether that's for flights or for Airbnbs, anything that can kind of, you know, keep you on the hook for a huge expense if something falls through. Maria, thanks so much for coming on the show. and for all these great tips, I'm sure it's going to help a lot of people during this busy travel season. So thanks. Thanks so much for having me.

That was Maria Postelniak, the Globe's Consumer Affairs Reporter. That's it for today. I'm Cheryl Sutherland. Alyssa Wheeler joins us as our Brooke Forbes Fellow and is our associate producer. Our producers are Madeline White, Michal Stein, and Ali Graham. David Crosby edits the show. Adrian Chung is our senior producer. and Angela Pichenza is our executive editor.

Thanks so much for listening, and I'll talk to you tomorrow.