WestJet Cancels Flights As Pilots Go On Strike

Might as well just work it out now ? Isn’t that usually the outcome of a strike ? How long do pilot strikes usually last ?

short-term strikes are allowed in some countries but not w/ US airlines. Going into the peak summer season is highly risky for Westjet and for the pilot careers. I doubt it will work out well for either side or for other Canadian airlines that are in various parts of the same process.

Seems unreasonable to expect the same as pilots get in the USA. This is a different market. Every industry has a pay gap to the USA. Let market forces dictate, if pilots leave for the USA then WestJet would have to align.

So Westjet is comparing themselves to a global and nation conglomerate in another country? Pilots are in high demand but discretionary spending will decline pretty quickly in the next 12-24 months which could all of a sudden cause the opposity problem of a pilot shortage.

This is similar to what is seen in other industries as well. Employees in other Western countries, most especially Canada, want to be paid like they’re US employees but without losing any of the social benefits that they receive in their countries that the US doesn’t have.

They seem to not understand that US business margins are fundamentally different from business margins outside the US due to corporate tax contributions. If you want to be paid like you live in the US, immigrate to the US. Thousands of Canadians do it every year.

That's a very nice sentiment Tyler. May I ask what visa pilots may use?
I'm a Canadian working for another airline flying 737s and have looked into it, hell my sim partner had US citizenship but because his licenses were Canadian he decided to stay.

Visa waits presently north of two years. We can't get sponsored to work for US airlines because they demand (reasonably) that you have right to work before applying.

E-3 allows for pilots, but that's open to Australians, not Canadians.
EB-1 requires an extremely high bar of prominence
An EB-2 NIW requires you to prove "exceptional ability requirement" such as having authored peer-reviewed papers or having work that goes outside your employer. Not typically applicable to an airline pilot, whose flying is for a company.
See below:
https://pilotsglobal.com/national-interest-waiver

The US also has difficult and expensive license conversions (including the ATP/CTP course which does not exist in Canada). Most US candidates have this course paid for by their regional airline before flying a jet, and there is no way to challenge/experience out of it coming from a major airline abroad. You have to pay your way to the US, buy the course yourself at the cost of tens of thousands, and then *hope* it's worth it and you can get sponsorship for a visa after.

Basically "just move to the US" is a sentiment that is easy to say, but hard to actually do if you aren't already an American by birth.

To give some information about *why* negotiations are going so bad, the sticking point is Swoop, who are on the same contract. Right now, Swoop pilots start at 39,800USD and captains at only 73,800USD.

WestJet had some of the best morale and labour relations a decade ago, but repeatedly trying to cheat their pilots and outsourcing their flying from their already discounted normal rates to Swoop have made things so poisoned there it's unbelievable.

For context as to how poorly paid Swoop pilots are paid even in Canada, other ULCCs in Canada have starting salaries over 50% higher.

I don't believe for a second when WJ is claiming numbers like "300,000" that they are being truthful more than a dozen pilots will make that, the sticking point is almost assuredly that junior pilots will continue to make garbage pay.

And for those saying "Canadians can't be paid anything like the US", why not? Pricing, household income, cost of living are all comparable. Canada is a more expensive country to live in than the US. The answer is, and has been, the strength of the pilot unions in the US protecting their interests.

I have an upcoming flight ticketed on Delta with one segment on WestJet metal. Flight is still scheduled but wonder how Delta will handle if WJ flight is canceled?

This could be a long strike the federal govt is Liberal and is only interested in East Coast Canada or Quebec based Airlines like Air Canada.
Also it's a minority Federal Govt backed up by the Union NDP, who won't want to vote pilots back to work.
However the NDP probably believe the pilots are elitist and may not be worried about ordering them back to work.
Either way, with an inept federal government at the moment with no care about the west coast, it's going to be an interesting outcome.

All these unions are delusional on these demands. Be happy you're making great pay.

@Tyler Although Canada is reputed to have good social benefits (don't expect to see a specialist within 6 months for initial assessment, or elective surgery within a year) they come from the incredibly high Income Taxes that every employee pays. Not from the employer. Marginal tax rate which kicks in at a very low level is in the order of 55% or higher depending on the Province of residence.

So after tax there's not a hell of a lot left.

100%

Marry an American or go through the southern border.

"go through the southern border" Thanks for showing the level of awareness on the issues here. If only I had thought that instead of just entering the US normally like I do almost weekly if I had just done what your cable TV and facebook feed told you worked Joe Biden would personally give me a green card. Also I love the idea of "just destroy your current family and marry the first yank you see on vacation" is your idea of a reasonable plan.