WestJet cancels 40 flights ahead of maintenance and technical strike

June 19, 2024

Summary

WestJet has begun keeping plans in anticipation of a possible strike by its maintenance engineers.
The measure is expected to result in 40 flight cancellations, affecting around 6,500 customers.
The airline and the union have made accusations against each other regarding working conditions and safety in maintenance operations.

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WestJet is taking preventive measures as its maintenance engineers plan to go on strike, forcing the airline to ground some of its aircraft on June 18 and 19, 2024. In total, the Canadian airline has planned to cancel 40 flights, affecting around 6,500 passengers.

Reference to arbitration

The WestJet Group, consisting of WestJet and WestJet Encore, announced that it would cancel 40 flights on June 18 and 19, affecting approximately 6,500 travelers during the two-day industrial action by WestJet’s aircraft maintenance engineers and technical operations department employees.

The Canadian airline said it has begun parking aircraft in a safe and organized manner during this period, and that proactive communication with customers and flight crews can minimize the risk of these parties being stranded at an airport.

Photo: CSWFoto | Shutterstock

The airline has decided to cancel the flights while it awaits a response from the Canadian Industrial Relations Board (CIRB), which would have to intervene under Canadian labour law.

If the CIRB grants WestJet’s request, the airline and its maintenance technicians, represented by the Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association (AMFA), will be referred to arbitration. During the arbitration process, both parties would have to accept a collective agreement that would prevent industrial action by WestJet or AMFA.

WestJet Encore De Havilland Canada Dash 8 Q400 landing in Calgary shutterstock_574979533

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Emergency plan

Diederik Pen, President and Chief Operating Officer (COO) of WestJet Group, said the airline was disheartened that AMFA’s strike announcement forced it to activate its contingency plan and begin parking aircraft.

“We deeply regret that this will impact the travel plans of our guests, communities and businesses that rely on our vital air service.”

Photo: Markus Mainka | Shutterstock

The COO explained that after the union’s rejection “a generous preliminary agreement”, When the company learned of a salary sacrifice that would have made its maintenance technicians and other technical staff some of the highest paid in Canada, it was clear that the negotiation process had failed.

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Worrying security trend

Meanwhile, AMFA has issued the latest update, including WestJet’s submission to the CIRB. According to the union, the airline claims that the deterioration of its maintenance procedures is causing irreparable harm to the public.

“A more troubling statistic that WestJet cites in relation to the decline in the airline’s maintenance standards is the dramatic increase in aircraft operating with Minimum Equipment Lists (MELs), which identify non-functional equipment on aircraft used in commercial service. As of May 2023, WestJet’s fleet was operating with 101 MELs.”

In addition, WestJet provided data indicating that the airline’s aircraft grounded (AOG) count increased by 96% to 277 aircraft between May 2023 and May 2024. As for MELs, there were 101 aircraft with MELs in May 2023, and by May 2024, that number had increased to 257.

WestJet 737 MAX 8 shutterstock_2336340771

Photo: Welshboy2020 | Shutterstock

The union disagreed, saying that the safety of commercial flight operations depends on redundant systems. However, the current state of WestJet’s flight operations reflects the dismantling of essential layers of safety. The union added that while the planes were de jure airworthy, the airline had been carrying passengers on aircraft with lower levels of safety, a trend that “disturbing.”

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Understaffed maintenance work

AMFA also pointed out that during negotiations with the union, WestJet admitted that its maintenance departments were understaffed. According to the union, WestJet admitted that it was unable to fill vacancies. “at the below-market wages it currently pays its aircraft maintenance technicians (AMEs).”

However, despite the labor problems, WestJet is focused on increasing its capacity through aggressive growth and fleet expansion, including purchasing some aircraft from Lynx Air. The latter airline went bankrupt in February 2024.

Photo: sockagphoto | Shutterstock

“If WestJet were to achieve its misguided goals, the company would have very few AMEs left and the pressure to increase the number of aircraft operating with non-functional equipment in revenue would be enormous.”

The union cited a comedic reference, namely a slogan that read: “The beatings will continue until morale improves.” According to AMFA, the policy was wrong, no matter the context, and in aviation, where safety is paramount, it was “unreasonable.”