WestJet flight attendants have voted in favour of giving their union a strike mandate, moving the airline one step closer to a possible labour disruption if a new contract cannot be reached.The vote involved approximately 4,400 WestJet and WestJet Encore flight attendants represented by the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE). The union said the vote gives members the ability to take job action if negotiations with the airline fail, but it does not mean a strike will happen immediately.The two sides have been negotiating for about 10 months over a new collective agreement.CUPE has said key issues include wages, scheduling, and compensation for work flight attendants perform outside of the time they are officially paid for, including duties before and after flights..The union argues flight attendants spend significant time completing required tasks on the ground, including preparing aircraft cabins, boarding passengers and completing post-flight responsibilities, without full compensation.On Tuesday, flight attendants demonstrated their support for possible job action by holding information pickets outside WestJet’s Calgary campus and at international airports in Calgary and Winnipeg.“WestJet flight attendants are committed to reaching a deal at the table,” Alia Hussain, president of CUPE Local 8125 told Global News.“We are renegotiating or attempting to renegotiate the archaic flight credit system that, through the very nature of how it works, creates an exploitation of labour, which causes flight attendants to have to work up to approximately 35 hours a month of free hours and we are trying to change that,” Hussain said.WestJet CEO Alexis von Hoensbroech met briefly with flight attendants on the Calgary picket line Tuesday morning, saying the airline recognizes their important role and wants to reach a new agreement with improved compensation and contract terms.“The last contract has been running for five years. It was done in the middle of the pandemic, so there’s a lot of catch-up to be done because they fell behind inflation." von Hoensbroech said."So we absolutely recognize that a significant improvement is necessary, and that’s what they’re telling us, and that’s why they’re picketing out there,” .WestJet has said it remains committed to reaching an agreement through negotiations and that it believes the bargaining process is the best path forward.A strike mandate allows the union to consider job action if talks break down, but several steps must still take place before a legal strike could occur. The two sides can continue negotiating in an effort to reach a deal and avoid disruptions for travellers.The potential dispute could have a major impact in Calgary, where WestJet is headquartered and where Calgary International Airport serves as one of the airline’s largest hubs.For now, WestJet flights continue to operate as scheduled while negotiations continue. A strike is not imminent, but if the two sides fail to reach an agreement, the earliest a legal strike or employer lockout could take place is August 2.
