By Skies Magazine | April 16, 2024 Estimated reading time 3 minutes, 8 seconds.
WestJet Encore pilot leaders have approved a full tentative agreement with management, bringing their long-running labour standoff a step closer to resolution.
Terms of the deal were not released, but a union representative from the Air Line Pilots Association International (ALPA) said it would bring pilot wages closer to their counterparts at other regional airlines in Canada.
“This tentative agreement goes a long way towards addressing many of the long-standing issues for WestJet Encore pilots by bringing our wages and working conditions significantly more in line with those of our regional pilot counterparts across the country,” said Capt Carin Kenny, chair of the WestJet Encore Master Executive Council.
“Our goal has always been to reach an agreement that will help solve many of the airline’s pilot attraction and retention issues, provide industry-standard wages and working conditions, and provide a better work/life balance for our pilots.”
Pilots and management negotiated for seven months, and the pilots had threatened to strike, before union leaders reached the tentative deal. The parties closed an agreement-in-principle on April 8, 2024, but said at the time they still needed to finalize language.
This tentative agreement is a step toward resolving the conflict, but still needs to be approved by a majority of union members.
Management did not immediately comment on the deal, and has largely remained quiet during late-stage negotiations. WestJet Encore is the Calgary-based airline’s regional carrier, flying De Havilland Q400 turboprop airliners to smaller cities.
Pilots will begin voting on the agreement “over the coming days,” the union said in a statement on April 15.
“WestJet Encore was once seen as the first step to a successful career within the WestJet Group,” said Kenny. “For the past several years, we have become a training ground for pilots who leave to find better career opportunities elsewhere. This contract will go a long way towards changing that, making the WestJet Group a desired career choice once again.”
