Dozens of employees at the Winnipeg Richardson International Airport are on the picket line Monday morning.
The Winnipeg Airports Authority and the Union of Canadian Transportation Employees were unable to reach a deal by the strike deadline at 3 a.m. Monday.
About 150 employees at the airport have gone on strike including duty managers, administrative staff, maintenance workers and general labourers.
“We have a significant portion of members on the picket line already that were ready to go at 2:30 this morning,” union representative Marianne Hladun said Monday.
As of Monday around 6 a.m. no flights were delayed at the airport.
The airports authority said it tabled an offer that included a five per cent wage increase over the course of a five-year agreement and a commitment to no layoffs as a result of any changing roles in the company. The WAA also increased the offer to 7.5 per cent Sunday in hopes of reaching a new agreement.
“Our mandate is to operate our airport in a fiscally prudent manner in the best interests of our community,” said Barry Rempel, WAA president and CEO. “We respect our employees and value what they contribute to our company every day, which is why we have offered our team more money and guaranteed job security.”
The airport has contingency plans in place so there shouldn’t be any significant disruption to flight schedules.