(Calgary) WestJet executives said Saturday afternoon at a news conference in Calgary that 235 flights had already been canceled by midday, affecting some 33,000 passengers, and that it was possible that another 150 flights be canceled by the end of the day if no solution is found to the walkout.
Published at 7:52 a.m.
Updated at 12:10 p.m.
Keith Doucette and Rianna Lim
The Canadian Press
The Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association (AMFA) said its members began striking around 7:30 p.m. Eastern Time on Friday because “the airline’s reluctance to negotiate with the union made the inevitable strike.
The move comes as the federal government on Thursday ordered binding arbitration to resolve the dispute between the airline and its mechanics.
For two weeks, difficult discussions have been held with the union with a view to a new collective agreement.
In an update to its 680 members, the union negotiating committee referred to an order from the Canada Industrial Relations Board that does not explicitly prohibit strikes or lockouts while the court undertakes arbitration at the following the directive from Labor Minister Seamus O’Regan on Wednesday.
PHOTO SEAN KILPATRICK, CANADIAN PRESS ARCHIVES
Federal Labour Minister Seamus O’Regan
On Saturday morning, O’Regan said he was reviewing the Canada Industrial Relations Board’s order because it was “not consistent” with his instructions. “I will consider additional measures to protect the interests of the employer, the union and all Canadians travelling this national holiday weekend,” he said on the social network X.
Calgary-based WestJet officials on Friday slammed the mechanics’ union’s decision, saying they were “extremely outraged by these actions” and will hold AMFA “fully accountable for the unnecessary stress and costs that have resulted.”
Early Saturday, WestJet President Diederik Pen said in a statement that the strike “serves no one” and that “the scale of this deliberate disruption is devastating.”
On Thursday, WestJet said AMFA was complying with the arbitration order and that as a result, “there will be no strike or lockout and the airline will no longer cancel flights.”
Check WestJet flight status
Sean McVeigh, a WestJet aircraft maintenance engineer who was on the picket line at Terminal 3 at Toronto Pearson International Airport on Saturday, said the strike was an attempt to force the airline to return to “respectful bargaining,” adding that the union regrets any inconvenience caused to passengers.
“The reason they (passengers) may have missed a flight or had to cancel is because WestJet is not respectfully sitting at the table and negotiating,” he said alongside about twenty other people on the picket line.
He stressed that employees were demanding better working conditions and a “fair and respectful salary” since they assume “a lot of responsibilities”.
Earlier this month, mechanics overwhelmingly rejected a tentative deal with WestJet, prompting the airline to seek government intervention.
The fault lies with management, not the union.
Sean McVeigh, WestJet aircraft maintenance engineer
Gabor Lukacs, president of the airline passenger rights group, believes “the fault lies with management, not the union.” “From a business management perspective, WestJet has not handled this situation well and needs to deal with it,” he said in a telephone interview.
He said WestJet has a legal obligation to find alternative travel arrangements for stranded passengers within 48 hours, either on another of its flights or with a competitor.
People can also ask for a refund, but Mr Lukacs advises against it.
“I urge passengers not to accept refunds. If you accept a refund, WestJet can wash its hands of its obligations to you. »
The change in position on Friday appeared to shock both travelers and executives.
“Is my Sunday flight in jeopardy?” Andrew Wheatley of Edmonton asked in a post on social media site X. “I support a union’s right to strike if it’s legal. And I hope they get a good deal. But at the same time, I have to be at work Monday morning,” he added.
This isn’t the first time WestJet has been on the brink of a strike. Last year, the airline avoided a strike in the early hours of the May long weekend, but before canceling more than 230 flights and forcing thousands to change their travel plans.
