Air Canada labour dispute sparks change of plans at Canada Summer Games

With more than 4,000 Canadian athletes concentrated in the country’s easternmost city for the Canada Summer Games, a possible airline strike is causing organizers to rejig some travel itineraries.

The Canada Games Council enacted a contingency travel plan to ensure all participants at the Games during the first week — Aug. 8 to 17 —  are able to return home, and all second week participants are able to arrive in and return from St. John’s, N.L., the council stated Wednesday in a news release.

The Games run through Aug. 25.

The Canadian Union of Public Employees, which represents 10,000 flight attendants with Air Canada and Air Canada Rouge, gave 72-hours’ notice of strike action on Wednesday. 

The airline responded with a 72-hour lockout notice.

“Air Canada will begin a phased wind down of most of its operations to be completed over the next three days,” stated a news release from the airline on Wednesday.

Team Nunavut organizers are looking into any potential scheduling complications that could be created by the labour dispute.

“We’re currently reviewing any potential impacts,” said Haley Hachey, Team Nunavut’s spokesperson.

So far, Games organizers have confirmed athletes from Ontario and Quebec will be affected.