Minister Hadju Misses the Mark on Canadian Support During Air Canada Flight Attendant Strike

On August 16, 2025, Minister of Labour Patty Hadju announced a back-to-work order for the ongoing Air Canada flight attendant strike, aiming to resolve the labor dispute swiftly. However, this decision appears to have misjudged the pulse of Canadian public opinion, particularly regarding who they support in this conflict.

Data from recent social media and traditional media activity leading up to the Minister’s announcement reveals a clear trend: Canadians have overwhelmingly rallied behind the flight attendants, not the union or management, highlighting concerns over unfair work practices, especially the policy of not paying flight attendants until the plane doors close.

The chart tracks posts in traditional and social media from August 12 to August 18, 2025, across four categories: Government, Cupe, Air Canada Bail Out, and Flight Attendants.

While posts about government intervention and union involvement (CUPE) remained minimal, the Flight Attendants category saw a dramatic spike, peaking at over 1,200 posts on August 17. This surge, far outpacing the other categories, underscores a public focus on the flight attendants’ plight rather than broader union negotiations. The data suggests that Canadians are less concerned with the union’s role and more outraged by the specific issue of unpaid work time—a practice that has fueled widespread sympathy for the striking workers.

Minister Hadju’s announcement, intended to restore normalcy, recognizing the negative impact on travelers and transportation of critical pharmaceutical goods Air Canada has, but instead the government’s position seems to have backfired.

The back-to-work order has galvanized further support for the flight attendants, who are defying the directive, as evidenced by the continued rise in posts from 6415 posts on Aug 15 to 16138 on Aug 17, representing an 153% increase. This defiance resonates with the public, reinforcing the narrative that flight attendants are fighting for fair compensation—a cause that has struck a chord amid the strike’s disruption.

But it is important to look at these numbers in context of other narratives. What reinforces the perspective that the general public is on the side of flight attendants is the huge uptick in mentions over the same time period of government bail outs received by Air Canada, going from 51 to 441 –a whopping 766% increase. Although a very small portion of the total conversation, this data point matters because it highlights the growing momentum of a narrative pointing to corporate executives for poor management practices.

Going even further, based on our sample of X posts, of the top 10 posts with the highest engagement, 60% strongly support the flight attendant’s vs 20% that are neutral. The final 20% come from Air Canada’s official account, each with strongly negative sentiment in the comments, as analyzed by AI.   

A recent Angus Reid poll about the strike paints a similar picture. This poll was not commissioned by the airline or CUPE, making its findings more independent and unassailable than polls funded by the union.

The data paints a clear picture: Canadians are not blindly backing the union but are specifically championing the flight attendants’ experience and pay equity. Minister Hadju’s intervention may have aimed to end the strike, but it has instead highlighted a disconnect between government action and public sentiment, leaving the flight attendants’ struggle at the forefront of this labour dispute.