Except translation, this story has not been edited by achinews staff and is published from a syndicated feed.
Thousands of WestJet customers are reeling after the airline canceled around 40 flights ahead of a possible strike by the plane’s mechanics this Thursday.
Around 6,500 passengers were booked on the canceled journeys, scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday. WestJet said the move reduces the potential for stranded passengers and ensures the carrier can avoid leaving planes in remote locations.
About 670 WestJet mechanics, represented by the Fraternal Society of Aircraft Mechanics, are set to walk off the job as early as Thursday night after giving the airline strike notice earlier this week following months of negotiations.
The Calgary-based company has asked the Canadian Industrial Relations Board to intervene in binding arbitration, which would see the labor tribunal hammer out a contract between the two sides — their first collective agreement. In the meantime, the board could prohibit a work stoppage.
Union members voted overwhelmingly to reject a tentative deal last week and oppose the airline’s request for arbitration this week.
Passenger protection regulations entitle customers to a full refund in the original form of payment for canceled flights, said Gabor Lukacs, president of the Air Passenger Rights advocacy group.
If the strike goes ahead and WestJet cannot rebook passengers within 48 hours of the original departure time, the airline “must buy passenger seats on competing airlines – at WestJet’s expense,” Lukacs said. , setting out the Air Passenger Protection Regulations.
For trips canceled before the potential work stoppage, he argued, the carrier must rebook customers on competitor flights if they can’t get them on WestJet planes within nine hours of scheduled departure. The airline would also be on the hook for meals and accommodation as well as compensation – as opposed to a refund – of between $400 and $1,000, depending on the length of the delay.
“If I were an affected passenger, I would give WestJet one chance to rebook me on a competitor. I would record the call/interaction. If it was ignored or declined, I would purchase a ticket on competitor, and then make WestJet pay for all the expenses plus the standard compensation (passenger rights),” Lukacs said.
‘We’re going backwards’
WestJet has already canceled dozens of flights, including the one scheduled to take Ian and Linda Cormack home.
“I’m very disappointed,” said Linda, who is currently stuck in Calgary.
They received an email from WestJet on Tuesday evening explaining that their Wednesday 11:30am flight from Calgary to Toronto had been cancelled.
The Cormacks say WestJet gave them an option to fly out Wednesday afternoon but it was routed through Vancouver with a five-hour layover before leaving for Toronto.
“They canceled our flight and now we have to go back to Vancouver and then to Toronto, so we’re going backwards,” Ian said.
The couple looked at other flights but decided against it.
“We tried to change it with WestJet last night but we were stuck online for an hour. We tried with people (at the airport) and they basically said that’s how many flights have been affected,” said Linda.
“We were thinking maybe going on a plane maybe tomorrow but if they go on strike then we’ll be here for a few more days,” said Ian.
They are also worried about family members flying WestJet tomorrow.
“They’re hoping their flight doesn’t get canceled so hopefully it will work out for them for a wedding,” said Linda.
Corey Reid of Calgary was about to travel to the East coast, and although his departure flight was not cancelled, he is worried that this could affect his return home.
“That’s the kind of thing I worry about. I’m wondering if I should get on the plane because if that’s affected I’ll be in danger of losing my job,” said Reid.
Dozens of flights cancelled
On top of the 40 flights canceled by the airline on Tuesday and Wednesday, at least 13 more have been delayed so far for Thursday, according to tracking service FlightAware.
WestJet president Diederik Pen said on Tuesday night that the airline was “very discouraged” to trigger the contingency plan and begin grounding aircraft after receiving the 72-hour strike warning.
“We deeply regret the disruption this will have on the travel plans of our guests, communities and businesses that rely on our essential air service,” he said in a statement.
The union said Monday it opposes WestJet’s request for arbitration because the process could undermine aircraft maintenance engineers’ (AMEs) bid for more contract earnings.
“If adopted by the Canadian Industrial Relations Board, it would greatly frustrate the AMEs’ goal of reaching an industry-changing contract because arbitrators are generally driven by industry ‘norms’ – the same norms which has kept AMEs under the heel of management and industrial. unions favor the unskilled majority,” the negotiating committee claimed in a statement on Monday.
Labor Minister Seamus O’Regan said federal mediators were continuing to work with both parties this week.
“Intermediaries are at it. So things are going on and we support them at the table where the best deals are made,” he told reporters on Tuesday.
With files from Mia Rabson in Ottawa and Alesia Fieldberg on CTV Calgary
This report was first published by The Canadian Press on June 19, 2024.
(Except translation, this story has not been edited by achinews staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
source link https://calgary.ctvnews.ca/thousands-affected-after-westjet-cancels-flights-in-anticipation-of-mechanics-strike-1.6932502
