(Calgary) The WestJet airline pilots’ strike that should have been called Friday night has been averted.
The company and the union, which represents the approximately 1,800 WestJet and Swoop-branded pilots, said they reached a last-minute agreement to prevent a strike that would have broken out just before the May long weekend.
The Calgary-based airline grounded most of its fleet on Thursday, grounding its 130 planes at airports from Vancouver to Halifax and leaving thousands of travelers across Canada in limbo.
Dozens of domestic, U.S. and overseas routes were affected by the closure, while regional service flights operated by WestJet Encore and WestJet-owned Sunwing Airlines were unaffected.
WestJet and Swoop pilots were scheduled to leave work at 5 a.m. Friday, after the Air Line Pilots Association issued a strike notice last Monday.
The airline advises that the return to normal operations will take some time. She advises travelers to check their flight status before heading to the airport and to visit WestJet’s Customer Updates website or Swoop’s website for more information on flight status.
Bernard Lewall, who heads the union federation WestJet, said the dispute was about wages, job security and working hours. He pointed out that WestJet pilots make about half the salary of some of their counterparts in the United States.
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