Air Canada faced a midnight deadline Friday to avert a flight attendants strike that would shut down service, creating summer travel chaos for the carrier's 130,000 daily passengers.

The Canadian Union of Public Employees, which represents Air Canada's 10,000 flight attendants, says that in addition to wage increases it wants to address uncompensated ground work, including during the boarding process.

Rafael Gomez, who heads the University of Toronto's Center for Industrial Relations, told AFP it's "common practice, even around the world" to compensate flights attendants based on time in the air.

He said the union had built an effective communication campaign around the issue, creating a public perception of unfairness.

An average passenger, not familiar with common industry practice,

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