Air Canada Service Reps Could Strike Monday

A rally planned for today at Toronto's Pearson airport intends to kick negotiations into top gear with a deadline looming.

Canadians could be facing the summer of the strike, with Air Canada's customer service representatives threatening to walk off the job on Monday if they can't reach a new collective agreement. The 3,200 members of the Canadian Auto Workers union voted 98 per cent in favour of going on strike, which could happen as soon as 11:59 p.m. Monday. The union is planning a rally at Toronto's Pearson International Airport today to let management know it's serious about following through with the strike mandate. The chief issues in negotiations are Air Canada's plans for a new discount airline, which has been roundly panned by most of the air carrier's unions, and proposed changes to pensions.