Bargaining Update #33: Response to Company Communications
Dear members,
Many of you have now seen the Company's message announcing that it has started parking aircraft across the network.
Let us be clear: while progress has been made at the bargaining table, we remain far apart on the issues that matter most to Cabin Personnel.
What is deeply disappointing about the Company's communication is that it attempts to shift responsibility for these events onto your Bargaining Committee. That narrative is simply not supported by what has occurred at the bargaining table.
From the outset of bargaining, your Bargaining Committee has consistently sought additional bargaining dates, longer days at the table, and meaningful engagement on the issues that matter most to Cabin Crew. Time and again, substantive Union proposals have remained before the Company awaiting meaningful responses. We have remained ready to bargain. We remain ready today.
Let's also be clear about another important fact. The decision to park aircraft, cancel flights, and disrupt the travel plans of thousands of Canadians is a decision made by WestJet's leadership. Those are management choices.
The Company is prepared to absorb the substantial costs associated with reducing its operation while continuing to tell Cabin Crew that meaningful investments in the people who make this airline successful cannot be made. Rather than directing its resources toward reaching a fair collective agreement, it has chosen a different path.
Members should understand that distinction.
This round of bargaining has never been about seeking something unreasonable. It has been about correcting the shortcomings of a collective agreement negotiated during the extraordinary circumstances of the COVID-19 pandemic, an agreement that remained in place for five years while Cabin Crew experienced rising costs, increasing operational demands, and a compensation system that continues to leave significant portions of our work unpaid.
From the beginning of bargaining, our priorities have been clear, consistent, and transparent:
Wage rates that recognize the value of the profession and our position in market
Meaningful wage triggers that work to eliminate unpaid work.
Modernizing working conditions to reflect the reality of today's operation, where duty days have grown longer, schedules have become more demanding, and operational pressures continue to increase.
These are not minor issues. They are the foundation of this round of bargaining and the reason we are still at the table.
The Company has described its proposal as “transformative”. An agreement is only transformative if it meaningfully addresses the issues that brought the parties to bargaining. While movement has been made, the outstanding issues that matter most to Cabin Crew remain unresolved. That is why we remain a considerable distance from reaching an agreement.
Our Bargaining Committee remains fully engaged in negotiations. We have never sought disruption for the sake of disruption. Our objective has always been, and continues to be, reaching a fair negotiated collective agreement at the bargaining table.
We know this uncertainty is difficult. We also know the professionalism, resilience, and solidarity that Cabin Personnel have demonstrated throughout this process. Continue to support one another, remain focused on official Union communications, and know that every decision we make is guided by one objective: securing an agreement that properly recognizes the work you perform every single day.
Thank you for your continued trust and support.
Standby for further instructions.
In Unity,
Your WestJet Mainline Bargaining Committee