Sudden strike cancels most WestJet flights over holiday weekend
(MENAFN) More than three-quarters of WestJet's flights were canceled by Sunday, according to FlightAware, due to a surprise strike by its maintenance workers, despite federal government efforts to prevent disruptions over the long holiday weekend.
The airline reported a total of 832 flight cancellations, affecting nearly 100,000 passengers both domestically and internationally.
A news agency reported that around 680 mechanics, whose daily inspections and repairs are crucial for flight operations, went on strike Friday evening after failing to reach an agreement on wages and working conditions.
"We continue to believe that this strike is intended to cause maximum damage to our company and to the country," said WestJet CEO Diederik Penn on Sunday, adding that he was urgently awaiting federal government intervention.
The company stated that it had reduced its operational fleet to 32 aircraft, down from about 200 normally. Negotiations between the two parties continued late into Saturday with the help of an arbitrator but were unsuccessful. Talks were scheduled to resume on Sunday.
On Thursday, the threat of collective action was initially averted after the federal government ordered binding arbitration to resolve the dispute over wages and working conditions.
However, the Mechanics Union decided to proceed with the strike on Friday evening, arguing that the government decision does not prevent a strike and emphasizing that "the airline’s refusal to negotiate made the strike inevitable."
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