A strike by WestJet Airlines’ mechanics that has led to hundreds of cancelled flights over the Canada Day long weekend will continue until a deal is reached, the union’s president told Reuters on Sunday.
Bret Oestreich, president of the Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association (AMFA), said the two sides will reconvene with a mediator on Sunday. The union represents about 680 workers at WestJet, including aircraft maintenance engineers, who went on strike Friday after 97 per cent of members rejected a pay deal reached in May.
In an emailed update to CBC News Sunday afternoon, WestJet said 832 flights had been cancelled so far, including 78 flights scheduled for Monday, July 1, and three flights scheduled for Tuesday, July 2.
“All we want to do is to go back to the table,” said Oestreich. “The strike will be in effect until we get an agreement.”
He said the two sides are separated by a first-year economic difference of approximately seven per cent, or less than $8 million on a roughly four-year contract.
WestJet mechanics decided to strike as of Friday night — a move that surprised many, as the union and the airline were headed into binding arbitration. Here’s how the strike came to be, and how it’s affecting airline passengers.
77% of Sunday’s trips cancelled: flight tracker
As of Sunday morning, the tracking service FlightAware says 77 per cent of the day’s trips had been called off, with WestJet topping the global list for cancellations among major airlines Saturday and Sunday.
The workers, whose daily inspections and repairs are essential to airline operations, walked off the job despite a directive for binding arbitration from the federal labour minister.
Both the airline and AMFA have accused the other side of refusing to negotiate in good faith.
WestJet CEO Alexis von Hoensbroech directed some strong words at the union representing the airline’s mechanics after strike action was called for the Canada Day long weekend.
WestJet Airlines president Diederik Pen has stressed what he calls the “continued reckless actions” of a union that was making “blatant efforts” to disrupt Canadians’ travel plans, while the union claimed the Calgary-based company has refused to respond to its latest counterproposal.
During a news conference at WestJet headquarters in Calgary on Saturday morning, both Pen and the airline’s chief executive officer, Alexis von Hoensbroech, repeatedly said they were outraged and devastated by the strike, with von Hoensbroech calling it “totally absurd.”
“The reason why you actually do a strike is because you may need to exercise pressure on the bargaining table. If there is no bargaining table, it makes no sense,” he said.
He said that, as a result of the actions, the situation “will only grow in difficulty and magnitude.”
“So this is a very destructive thing, basically done by a rogue U.S. union that’s trying to make inroads into Canada and taking some practices in here that are very, very unusual,” said von Hoensbroech.
Premiers urge feds to do more
In a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, Sunday afternoon, Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe called on the federal government to “end the work stoppage today.”
“With hundreds of flights cancelled and tens of thousands of Canadians in limbo, the federal government must take action to ensure that work continues throughout the binding arbitration process,” said Moe.
Those sentiments were echoed by Alberta Premier Danielle Smith. She urged Ottawa on Sunday to “make the expectation clear that work must continue throughout binding arbitration.”
With tens of thousands of Albertans and their fellow Canadians stranded all across the world, the Westjet mechanics strike must end. <br><br>The labour board’s decision to allow the strike to continue during binding arbitration is a clear contravention of all norms, practices, and… <a href=”https://t.co/N38r9sJUdR”>pic.twitter.com/N38r9sJUdR</a>
—@ABDanielleSmith