WestJet strike leaves travellers feeling ‘abandoned’

More than 1,100 WestJet flights have been cancelled since last Thursday, when a strike by the airline’s mechanics union scrapped the travel plans of more than 100,000 customers.

The strike has since ended, but turbulence is expected to continue for thousands of passengers this week as the airline tries to get its fleet of planes off the tarmac and into the air.

In a service update, WestJet said the disruption had forced the airline to ground 130 of its 180 planes. The company confirmed it would take several more days to get its schedule back up and running. WestJet declined to provide a specific timeline or comment on the tens of thousands of travellers affected.

Sitting in his hotel room in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, Andre Estay says, “We just feel abandoned.”

Two weeks ago, Estay and his wife flew to Cabo for their 10th wedding anniversary. They were supposed to fly home Sunday, but the day before their flight, WestJet cancelled their plans.

“We received the email late Saturday night around 10:30 p.m.,” Estay told CTV News. “We’ve been trying to reach WestJet all Sunday, Monday and a little bit this morning, and we still haven’t been able to get through to them.”

Andre Estay says he feels “abandoned” in Mexico after his flight home was canceled. (Image courtesy of Andre Estay)

Estay and his wife were forced to book another flight home with their own funds for $1,000, but it won’t leave until next Saturday. They also had to pay an additional $2,200 to cover additional hotel nights.

A loyal WestJet customer, Estay says he is shocked by the lack of communication from Canada’s second-largest airline.

“We’ve been a WestJet member for over 10 years. We’re in their loyalty program. We have their Visa card. We’ve done our part. We’ve been loyal, and then they abandoned us. They let us down,” he said.

If a passenger flight is cancelled in Canada during a strike, the airline is considered to have been the victim of a cancellation, meaning they are not required to provide compensation. However, they are required to rebook you on another flight within 48 hours, at their own expense. If all WestJet flights are sold out, the airline expects you to be ticketed on another airline.

“Once things settle down a little bit, I would send a demand letter to WestJet with a copy of the receipts saying you caused this expense, pay up,” Gabor Lukcas, an air passenger rights advocate, told CTV News.