Flying WestJet over the long weekend? How a looming strike could affect you
Global News
A looming strike could ground WestJet flights ahead of the Canada Day long weekend. Here's what travellers need to know if they've got airfare booked with the carrier.
A looming strike at WestJet “couldn’t be worse timing” for hundreds of thousands of Canadians who booked a trip with the Calgary-based air carrier over the July long weekend, according to travel experts.
The union representing WestJet mechanics issued its second strike notice in as many weeks on Wednesday. It sets up a potential work stoppage to begin on Friday at 5:30 p.m. MT if a deal is not reached by then.
The first strike notice was averted last week when the two parties agreed to additional talks. Members of the Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association, which represents some 670 aircraft maintenance engineers and other skilled-trade positions at the carrier, rejected a tentative agreement on June 11, saying the airline did not offer sufficient compensation.
In advance of the new Friday strike deadline, WestJet has already cancelled some 25 flights between June 27 and 28. In a similar move last week, some 40 flights were nixed ahead of the previous deadline.
Roughly 3,300 customers had their flight plans disrupted in the latest round of cancellations. WestJet says some 250,000 travellers are currently booked to fly with the airline over the July long weekend.
The situation heading into the Canada Day holiday might ring familiar to some travellers who experienced similar uncertainty with WestJet last year. Ahead of the May long weekend in 2023, WestJet pilots were poised to strike until a deal was reached at the eleventh hour.
Martin Firestone, president of Travel Secure Inc., tells Global News that with Canadians primed for vacations to kick off the summer travel season, this possible strike “couldn’t be worse timing.”
“People are going to be scattered,” he says.
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