Unions Defy Government Intervention, Marking a Turning Point in Canadian Labor Relations

As of August 22nd, 2025, a significant shift is underway in Canadian labor relations. Over the past year, the Canadian government has intervened four times to aid seven companies and stop strikes using an obscure provision in the Labor Code. However, a recent attempt to end a strike by Air Canada's flight attendants through a similar decree failed, as the workers refused to obey the order and remained on strike for three days.

This defiance by the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), which represents the 10,000 flight attendants, has been hailed as a watershed moment by unions and labor experts. They believe this will strengthen the hand of unions in future negotiations, dissuade employers in federally regulated sectors from seeking government intervention, and complicate federal efforts to end work stoppages through this provision.

"We will reflect back on this dispute, this strike, as a turning point," said Chris Roberts, a professor at Carleton University and the National Director of the Social and Economic Policy Department of the Canadian Labour Congress. The Canadian Labour Congress, the country's largest workers' group, has called for parliamentary legislation to withdraw the government's powers under Section 107 of the Canadian Labour Code, which was enacted in 1984 and has been used five times in the past year to intervene in crucial sectors like railways, ports, and postal services.

The CUPE has set a precedent by defying the government order for the first time and has also filed one of many union lawsuits against Section 107, which they believe is "corrosive" and creates a "fundamental imbalance in labor relations."