Air Canada strike threatened by new bill OTTAWA, March 12 (UPI) -- Canadian Labor Minister Lisa Raitt said a bill to stop a strike at Air Canada was essential to the safety of citizens and the health of the economy. "I have no doubt that a work stoppage at Air Canada is contrary to the best interest of Canadians and Canadian businesses, and I have no doubt that a work stoppage could cause serious harm to the health of our recovering economy," Raitt said in House of Commons, where she is pushing a back-to-work bill through for a quick vote. The National Post reported Raitt introduced the bill Monday that could be debated Tuesday and voted into law Wednesday. Opposition decried the bill that intends to take away airline workers' right to strike. New Democratic Party labor critic Yvon Godin called the bill "anti-union, anti-worker." "What have workers done to this Conservative government so that they hate them so much that they can't give their fundamental right [to strike]?" he asked in the House. While the bill is debated in the capital, the Canada Industrial Relations Board begins a series of meetings this week to answer the question of how necessary is Air Canada to the health of the nation. Raitt has pointed out that commerce depends on the airline, but so do patients waiting for the delivery of critical pharmaceuticals. In addition, there are 12 to 17 communities that would be cut off from access to the rest of Canada if the airline were to shut down, Raitt said.