WestJet Pilots Could Go On Strike Next Month & Here's What It Could Mean For Travel

If you've got a trip booked with WestJet, you may want to consider alternative travel arrangements in light of a potential strike.

The union representing WestJet pilots voted Tuesday in favour of a strike as negotiations between workers and the airline continue to fizzle out.

Of the 1,600 WestJet pilots negotiating through a federal conciliation process, 93% have voted in support of "lawful job action" in the case that an agreement cannot be reached by May 16, the Air Line Pilots Association said in a news release on Tuesday.

The conciliation process allows the pilots to have the opportunity to seek the government's assistance to reach an agreement with the airline on their second contract. Bargaining began back in September 2022.

The ALPA says that the issues at the centre of the negotiations are recruitment and retention, largely due to WestJet "trying to reduce costs by driving down wages and refusing to address scheduling concerns and other poor working conditions, including job security."

Captain Bernard Lewall, the head of the union’s WestJet contingent, said in February that the airline was seeing a "mass exodus" of pilots as they explored better options with other airlines.

"WestJet is suffering from major pilot attraction and retention issues, which we believe management can easily navigate by offering a proper contract that recognizes past sacrifices and is reflective of the North American pilot labour marketplace," he said.

The ALPA said the airline is losing around 30 pilots per month, on track to lose up to 20% of its experienced pilot work force within the next year.

The potential strike could see WestJet pilots walk off the job just before the May long weekend, an already hectic time for travel.

However, some say the vote authorization doesn't necessarily mean a strike.

"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," Diederik Pen, WestJet Group's COO, said in a statement.

Likewise, McGill business professor Karl Moore told CityNews that the vote is a technique unions use and doesn't necessarily indicate job action will take place.

"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 told the publication.

WestJet CEO Alexis von Hoensbroech told reporters last week that bookings were not being affected by the threat of a strike, the Canadian Press reports.

He said that he expects to get through the negotiations without a strike and with "meaningful improvements to [the pilots'] contract."

WestJet said Tuesday that it will continue to work toward reaching an agreement.