Thousands of Canadian travellers had their summer holiday plans upset this week. WestJet flight attendants walked off the job in a dispute over pay.
Find out why the flight attendants stopped work, and how the airline solved the problem in just two days.
On 2 August, flight attendants at WestJet, Canada’s second-largest airline, walked off the job. About 4,400 flight attendants stopped work. They were in a dispute with the airline about pay.
The main issue was pay for the work done before take-off. This includes safety checks and helping passengers find their seats. Airlines call this ground work. WestJet did not pay staff for these hours. The flight attendants said this was unfair.
The flight attendants’ union is called CUPE, the Canadian Union of Public Employees. Its members said they were tired of working without full pay. CBC News reported that CUPE gave WestJet a 72-hour warning before the strike began. This gave WestJet time to cancel flights early. By Saturday, 1 August, the airline had already cancelled 276 flights.
The timing made things worse. The strike started on a long holiday weekend in Canada. Many families had planned trips. In the end, WestJet cancelled 309 flights. About 250,000 passengers were affected. Some people missed weddings. Others could not get to work on time. Many had to book new flights with other airlines.
Passengers with cancelled flights could ask for a refund. Canadian rules say airlines must help stranded passengers. WestJet said it would rebook people on other flights when it could.
WestJet and CUPE kept talking during the strike. The airline made a new offer. It included a 36% pay rise over four years. The airline also agreed to pay staff for ground work from now on. On 3 August, the two sides reached a deal. Union members must still vote before it becomes final. This kind of deal is called a tentative agreement.
The strike lasted only two days. But it caused chaos for thousands of travellers. It also showed a bigger problem. Airline staff around the world are asking for pay for every hour they work, not just flight time.
Check your understanding
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How many flight attendants took part in the WestJet strike?
The article says about 4,400 flight attendants stopped work.
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What was the main reason the flight attendants went on strike?
The article explains the dispute was about pay for ground work, work done before take-off like safety checks and helping passengers to their seats.
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Why did WestJet cancel flights before the strike officially started?
The article says the 72-hour warning “gave WestJet time to cancel flights early”, which lets us work out this was about limiting disruption, not reacting at the last minute.
Key vocabulary:
- ground work (noun) – jobs done on the ground before a flight, like safety checks and helping passengers board. Typical use: “the airline agreed to pay staff for ground work”.
- strike (noun) – when workers stop working together to ask for something, like better pay. Typical use: “flight attendants walked off the job in a strike”.
- stranded (adjective) – unable to travel because your flight or journey has stopped. Typical use: “airlines must help stranded passengers”.
- tentative agreement (noun phrase) – a deal that is not yet final and must still be approved. Typical use: “the two sides reached a tentative agreement”.
CEFR Level A2 / ICAO Level 3
To read about another airline dispute that disrupted summer travel, see our article on the Paris ground workers’ strike.
