Toronto Pearson flights may be without food or drink when the strike begins

Canadians departing Toronto Pearson International Airport may soon be without food or drink on their flights due to a possible strike.

More than 800 workers at Gate Gourmet's airline catering and logistics company may go on strike early Tuesday after the union said they were being paid “well below industry standards”.

“We are in a cost-of-living crisis, yet Gate Gourmet is ignoring the basic needs of its employees' families and refusing to pay workers a living wage,” said Martin, lead union negotiator and Teamsters Local Union 647 president. Cerqua, in a Tuesday press release.

“If this company doesn't step up to the plate and recognize how much lives have cost us, we're going to strike.”

1:52 a.mWestjet pilots were to walk off the job on Friday

Workers are tasked with preparing, packing and delivering food, snacks, beverages and in-flight service to aircraft. If a strike takes place, it will affect airlines operating out of the airport, including Air Canada, West Jet, United Airlines, Delta Airlines, TAP Air Portugal, Air India, Aero Mexico, SAS Scandinavian Airlines and Jetlines, the union added.

In addition to wage issues, Teamsters Local Union 647 Gate Gourmet, which represents about 3,000 food industry workers in Ontario, also said it has cut staffing levels in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. The union said the move had led to an increase in workplace accidents, including seven forklift truck drivers injured in the past three months.

Gate Gourmet Global News Toronto did not return a request for comment by publication time.

A WestJet spokesperson told Global News Toronto in an email that its catering team has prepared contingency plans to limit the impact of any potential disruption. An Air Canada spokesman said it was “too early to speculate.”

Pearson is Canada's largest and busiest international airport and handles millions of passengers every year.

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