The strike that began Friday night by 680 WestJet mechanics is over, as their union reached a tentative agreement Sunday night with the airline.
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This agreement with the employer will now have to be ratified by the union members.
“This will put an end to our legal strike action against the company, effective immediately,” said the Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association (AMFA) in a press release.
The union’s pressure tactics led to the cancellation of more than 800 flights over the weekend.
The airline had to ground 130 planes at 13 airports across the country.
“The harm done to Canadians and our airline is enormous, and a swift resolution was necessary,” WestJet Airlines president Diederik Pen said in a statement. “We are not happy with this outcome, but we will sleep better tonight knowing that further harm was avoided.”
The strike was, however, necessary, according to the union.
“We believe that this result would not have been possible without the strike, but we regret the disruption it caused to travelers over the Canada Day weekend,” he says.
The airline does not plan any further action of this kind, even if union members do not ratify the tentative agreement.
“We will not see any further union intervention in this dispute, as both parties have agreed to arbitrate the contract in the event of failure of ratification,” adds the WestJet president.
Given the scale of the disruption, however, a return to normal will take time.
“Further disruptions can be expected over the next week as the airline moves aircraft and crew back into place,” the airline said.
In total, the mechanics’ strike lasted 48 hours.
