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WestJet pilots issue Friday strike notice as thousands plan for long-weekend travel

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Members of the Air Line Pilots Association demonstrate amid contract negotiations outside the WestJet headquarters in Calgary on Friday, March 31, 2023.Jeff McIntosh/The Canadian Press

A labour dispute at WestJet Airlines, Canada’s second-largest airline, could disrupt travel plans for thousands of travellers on the long weekend.

WestJet’s pilots’ union said late Monday night that 1,850 pilots could stop flying early Friday morning, as the Air Line Pilots Association negotiators push for a new collective agreement. The Calgary-based airline responded with a notice that it plans to lock out the employees on the same day.

Both sides say they will continue to negotiate ahead of the deadline.

WestJet said in preparation for a work stoppage it will prepare to operate a reduced schedule, and provide “flexible” flight change and cancellation arrangements. WestJet had scheduled 540 flights for Friday, and 457 for Saturday, according to Cirium data.

In a statement, the pilot’s union said Friday’s job action “could include grounding all aircraft and effectively shutting down operations.”

The union has said it is seeking better pay, and that pilots at discount subsidiary Swoop be paid the same as WestJet crew. The union says 240 pilots quit WestJet last year for better work elsewhere , including in the United States.

“After nine months of negotiating, management still fails to understand today’s labour market conditions, leading to a mass exodus of our pilots in search of better work opportunities, and more will follow if this agreement does not meet our pilots’ needs,” said Bernard Lewall, head of WestJet’s pilots union. “Without the economic and job security improvements our pilots require, WestJet will be parking planes, as they will not have enough pilots to operate them or accomplish its own growth strategy.”

In a statement, WestJet said it regretted the lockout notice, but it needs to minimize the risk of stranding passengers, crews and planes.

“Our commitment and priority remains at the bargaining table, where we will continue to work around the clock to come to a reasonable agreement as soon as possible, in an effort to prevent labour action,” Alexis von Hoensbroech, WestJet Group’s chief executive officer, said in a statement.

WestJet said the union’s demands for pay that is closer to their U.S. counterparts “is not reasonable and is impeding the WestJet Group’s ability to reach an agreement in advance of the upcoming long weekend.

WestJet, owned by Onex Corp. of Toronto, has about 31-per-cent of the domestic market.

Duncan Dee, Air Canada’s chief operating officer until 2013, said ahead of a possible flight disruption the airline and its union would agree to move aircraft and crews to their home bases. This would avoid the expense and inconvenience of storing planes in other countries, and ensure employees are not stranded.

“They do not want to have an aircraft stuck in Cuba,” Mr. Dee said by phone.

WestJet was founded in 1994 as a small western Canadian low-cost airline known for an informal culture. Since then, the airline has added subsidiaries, a large fleet of planes and routes throughout Canada and the world. WestJet employs 15,000 people.

Mr. Dee said it is impossible to pin the labour dispute on the new owners and executives who run WestJet, because the workforce  is now unionized. There are big changes on both sides, Mr. Dee said.

 

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Carry On Canadian Business. Carry On!

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October 22, 2024

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Human Resources Officers must be very busy these days what with the general turnover of employees in our retail and business sectors. It is hard enough to find skilled people let alone potential employees willing to be trained. Then after the training, a few weeks go by then they come to you and ask for a raise. You refuse as there simply is no excess money in the budget and away they fly to wherever they come from, trained but not willing to put in the time to achieve that wanted raise.

I have had potentials come in and we give them a test to see if they do indeed know how to weld, polish or work with wood. 2-10 we hire, and one of those is gone in a week or two. Ask that they want overtime, and their laughter leaving the building is loud and unsettling. Housing starts are doing well but way behind because those trades needed to finish a project simply don’t come to the site, with delay after delay. Some people’s attitudes are just too funny. A recent graduate from a Ivy League university came in for an interview. The position was mid-management potential, but when we told them a three month period was needed and then they would make the big bucks they disappeared as fast as they arrived.

Government agencies are really no help, sending us people unsuited or unwilling to carry out the jobs we offer. Handing money over to staffing firms whose referrals are weak and ineffectual. Perhaps with the Fall and Winter upon us, these folks will have to find work and stop playing on the golf course or cottaging away. Tried to hire new arrivals in Canada but it is truly difficult to find someone who has a real identity card and is approved to live and work here. Who do we hire? Several years ago my father’s firm was rocking and rolling with all sorts of work. It was a summer day when the immigration officers arrived and 30+ employees hit the bricks almost immediately. The investigation that followed had threats of fines thrown at us by the officials. Good thing we kept excellent records, photos and digital copies. We had to prove the illegal documents given to us were as good as the real McCoy.

Restauranteurs, builders, manufacturers, finishers, trades-based firms, and warehousing are all suspect in hiring illegals, yet that becomes secondary as Toronto increases its minimum wage again bringing our payroll up another $120,000. Survival in Canada’s financial and business sectors is questionable for many. Good luck Chuck!. at least your carbon tax refund check should be arriving soon.

Steven Kaszab
Bradford, Ontario
skaszab@yahoo.ca

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Imperial to cut prices in NWT community after low river prevented resupply by barges

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October 22, 2024

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NORMAN WELLS, N.W.T. – Imperial Oil says it will temporarily reduce its fuel prices in a Northwest Territories community that has seen costs skyrocket due to low water on the Mackenzie River forcing the cancellation of the summer barge resupply season.

Imperial says in a Facebook post it will cut the air transportation portion that’s included in its wholesale price in Norman Wells for diesel fuel, or heating oil, from $3.38 per litre to $1.69 per litre, starting Tuesday.

The air transportation increase, it further states, will be implemented over a longer period.

It says Imperial is closely monitoring how much fuel needs to be airlifted to the Norman Wells area to prevent runouts until the winter road season begins and supplies can be replenished.

Gasoline and heating fuel prices approached $5 a litre at the start of this month.

Norman Wells’ town council declared a local emergency on humanitarian grounds last week as some of its 700 residents said they were facing monthly fuel bills coming to more than $5,000.

“The wholesale price increase that Imperial has applied is strictly to cover the air transportation costs. There is no Imperial profit margin included on the wholesale price. Imperial does not set prices at the retail level,” Imperial’s statement on Monday said.

The statement further said Imperial is working closely with the Northwest Territories government on ways to help residents in the near term.

“Imperial Oil’s decision to lower the price of home heating fuel offers immediate relief to residents facing financial pressures. This step reflects a swift response by Imperial Oil to discussions with the GNWT and will help ease short-term financial burdens on residents,” Caroline Wawzonek, Deputy Premier and Minister of Finance and Infrastructure, said in a news release Monday.

Wawzonek also noted the Territories government has supported the community with implementation of a fund supporting businesses and communities impacted by barge cancellations. She said there have also been increases to the Senior Home Heating Subsidy in Norman Wells, and continued support for heating costs for eligible Income Assistance recipients.

Additionally, she said the government has donated $150,000 to the Norman Wells food bank.

In its declaration of a state of emergency, the town said the mayor and council recognized the recent hike in fuel prices has strained household budgets, raised transportation costs, and affected local businesses.

It added that for the next three months, water and sewer service fees will be waived for all residents and businesses.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 21, 2024.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.

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U.S. vote has Canadian business leaders worried about protectionist policies: KPMG

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October 22, 2024

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TORONTO – A new report says many Canadian business leaders are worried about economic uncertainties related to the looming U.S. election.

The survey by KPMG in Canada of 735 small- and medium-sized businesses says 87 per cent fear the Canadian economy could become “collateral damage” from American protectionist policies that lead to less favourable trade deals and increased tariffs

It says that due to those concerns, 85 per cent of business leaders in Canada polled are reviewing their business strategies to prepare for a change in leadership.

The concerns are primarily being felt by larger Canadian companies and sectors that are highly integrated with the U.S. economy, such as manufacturing, automotive, transportation and warehousing, energy and natural resources, as well as technology, media and telecommunications.

Shaira Nanji, a KPMG Law partner in its tax practice, says the prospect of further changes to economic and trade policies in the U.S. means some Canadian firms will need to look for ways to mitigate added costs and take advantage of potential trade relief provisions to remain competitive.

Both presidential candidates have campaigned on protectionist policies that could cause uncertainty for Canadian trade, and whoever takes the White House will be in charge during the review of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement in 2026.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 22, 2024.

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