JAKARTA - More than 4,000 WestJet flight cabin crew, the second largest airline in Canada, went on strike on Sunday, causing hundreds of daily flights to be delayed and disrupting the travel plans of around 250,000 passengers.
Salary is at the heart of the dispute. The airline's flight attendants are demanding compensation for work done on the ground before and after flights.
The flight attendants are members of the Canadian Union of Public Employees.
In a statement, union representative Alia Hussain blamed WestJet for the strike.
"We would not be here if (the airline) had responded to our concerns seriously during almost 11 months of negotiations," Hussain said, quoted by Anadolu (3/8).
WestJet confirmed the strike and canceled 495 flights on Sunday, according to FlightAware, which disrupted travel plans in Canada in the midst of a three-day weekend holiday, ABC News reported.
The airline also announced on Sunday that the strike had led to the cancellation of trips for 250,000 passengers.
Monday is a national holiday in Canada, making it one of the busiest travel weekends of the year. The strike is expected to cost WestJet millions of dollars.
Meanwhile, WestJet said affected passengers will receive refunds.
"We're disappointed to be here; this directly impacts the travel plans of our guests, WestJet employees, and the communities and businesses we serve," CEO Alexis von Hoensbroech told The Canadian Press.
Regarding the demands, the trade union said that some of the work was not paid. Meanwhile, the company said its staff were indeed compensated, citing payments through a "credit hour" system rather than an hourly rate.
"We are proposing a proposal that will set a new standard for cabin crew in Canada, making WestJet the only airline to offer an hourly rate that includes all pre- and post-flight times, plus double-digit salary increases in the first year among other priorities raised by the union," von Hoensbroech explained.
"Unfortunately, the proposal was not accepted," said the CEO of the WestJet Group.
The airline's proposal includes a 13 per cent pay increase in October, a 2.5 per cent increase every January for the next three years, retroactive pay to January, and additional pay for all hours worked, equivalent to another 12 per cent pay increase, according to WestJet.
The proposal also increases other allowances such as daily meal allowance, vacation allowance, and maternity leave.
Meanwhile, Hussain said the negotiators "fought to the last minute to get a fair deal that recognised the value of the work done by cabin crew."
"WestJet's offer is insufficient," Hussain said.
However, both parties said they were willing to continue negotiations to reach an agreement.
It is known that Delta Air Lines was the first airline to introduce payment for ground jobs in 2022. Air Canada followed in February under a new contract.
Federal Minister of Employment Patty Hajdu said in a social media post that she and the two parties failed to reach an agreement after trying to negotiate a new contract.
Flight attendants currently receive between 28.88 US dollars and 53.61 US dollars per hour of work.
Under Air Canada's new agreement, flight attendants receive compensation of up to 70 percent of their hourly rate for hours before takeoff.
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