What a possible WestJet strike could mean for May long travel plans

WestJet pilots have voted in favour of job motion, leaving many questioning what a potential strike may imply for the May lengthy weekend.

There’s already sufficient uncertainty with journey lately, so that is most likely the very last thing anybody with plans needs to listen to.

However, McGill business professor Karl Moore, who has consulted for airways, says this vote doesn’t essentially imply journey will in the end be disrupted.

“It’s often a technique that the unions use, they’ll go out there, there’s people in favour and they might come to some settlement with the company. So maybe just the threat of a strike as opposed to a strike actually occuring. It’s a common tactic in negotiations, for sure,” he defined.

Read extra:

• WestJet pilots vote in favour of strike mandate, need higher pay and job safety

• WestJet pilots to launch strike authorization vote as negotiations fizzle

Moore says it’s possible going to be a “wait-and-see” state of affairs for these with tickets booked by WestJet. He notes some individuals might wish to make alternate plans, although.

“I think it’s wait and see, unless you’ve got something really important like a wedding or something where you really got to be there. Then you might go with some other choice,” he defined.

However, with many more likely to flip to massive airways like Air Canada, which is already “quite busy right now,” Moore says travellers within the west might discover ticket costs ticking up for various airways.

May 16 is the earliest date pilots can strike or WestJet can lock the pilots out, if it involves that.

Ultimately, Moore says it’s potential each side will come to some form of an settlement — as is the case usually.

“Part of it is that there’s a certain amount of exhaustion,” he instructed CityNews, saying it’s been a tricky return for a lot of since pandemic restrictions lifted.

“It came back faster than many people anticipated and there’s been a shortage of pilots. It’s been a rough time for them and they feel like they haven’t gotten kind of their rewards from WestJet that they should have gotten.”

Meanwhile, with many individuals taking to social media to lift their considerations about potential impacts, WestJet says it would proceed to work with the union to achieve an settlement.

“A strike authorization vote is a common step by unions in context of the overall labour negotiation process and does not mean a strike will occur,” stated WestJet Group Chief Operating Officer Diederik Pen.

“We remain unwaveringly committed to achieving an agreement that is competitive within Canada’s airline industry and ensures we have a long-term sustainable future so that we can continue to operate critical air service for millions of Canadians, while providing jobs for thousands at the WestJet Group.”

The Air Line Pilots Association introduced on Tuesday that 95 per cent of pilots voted, with 93 per cent of them in favour of the strike mandate.

The union says points round job safety, pay, and scheduling at WestJet, WestJet Encore, low cost subsidiary Swoop, stay unresolved.

Negotiations started final September.

-With information from Alejandro Melgar, Tiffany Goodwein, and The Canadian Press

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