The union representing WestJet Encore pilots says its members rejected the tentative deal reached last month, with just over half voting against the agreement.
WestJet Encore does much of its flying in Canada’s western provinces, with a fleet of 47 De Havilland Canada Dash-8-Q400 NexGen planes. The union says despite improvements to compensation and scheduling, the pilots want WestJet to do more to address ongoing issues with pilot recruitment, retention and morale.
"We are disappointed to learn that our WestJet Encore pilots have rejected an agreement that is distinctly competitive within Canada's airline industry and solutioned their unique concerns," said Diederik Pen, President of WestJet Airlines and Group COO.
"Our tentative agreement represented a robust negotiation process that got us to our final offer, and while we will meet with ALPA to determine next steps, we will hold firm on what is reasonable to ensure we can continue providing meaningful employment and affordable air travel to Canadians."
Prior to the tentative agreement, pilots with WestJet's regional subsidiary approved a strike mandate on April 2 by 97%. For its part, the union says the vote result shows pilots have a "deep-seated feeling" that the company is failing to recognize workers' needs beyond compensation.
The airline says the results of the ratification vote will not impact operations at this time.
Topics From This Article to Explore
