OTTAWA, Aug. 2 — Canada’s second-largest airline, WestJet, was hit by a flight attendants’ strike on Sunday, triggering hundreds of flight cancellations during one of the busiest travel weekends of the summer.
More than 4,000 flight attendants represented by the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) officially walked off the job after contract negotiations between the union and the airline failed to produce a new collective agreement.
In anticipation of the strike, WestJet began scaling back operations and issuing flight cancellations on Friday. According to the airline’s latest update, network-wide cancellations had climbed to 309 flights by Sunday.
“These actions ensure the airline has complete control of its operations and can communicate with guests and crew to minimize people being stranded,” said the airline in a news release.
The airline said that it remains at the table, committed to achieving a negotiated tentative agreement. Patty Hajdu, federal minister of jobs and families, took to social media early Sunday to describe the strike as a “disappointing development.”
Hajdu said she had met separately with both parties throughout the bargaining process and stressed that they “can and should come to an agreement at the bargaining table.”
The strike was primarily triggered by core compensation issues, most notably the union’s demands for fair pay for unpaid ground work, as well as disagreements over wage increases and scheduling terms. (Namibia Daily News/ Xinhua)
