Proactive Investors - WestJet Airlines (TSX:WJA) has begun cancelling and consolidating flights as it prepares for its aircraft maintenance engineers and other technical operations employees to walk off the job on Thursday night.
The Calgary, Alberta-based airline said it has cancelled about 40 flights Tuesday and Wednesday impacting about 6,500 guests.
The Aircraft Mechanics Fraternal Association (AMFA), which represents about 680 aircraft maintenance engineers and other skilled trade positions at the airline, served WestJet with a 72-hour strike notice on Monday evening after making the decision to terminate contract negotiations.
Union members voted overwhelmingly to reject a tentative deal from the airline last week.
WestJet has asked the Canadian Industrial Relations Board to intervene on the matter under the Canada Labour Code which, if accepted, would refer it to arbitration and prevent the strike.
"We are immensely disheartened that we are in a position where we must activate our contingency plan and begin parking aircraft, as a result of the strike notice served by AMFA," WestJet president Diederik Pen said in a statement.
"Following the memberships' nearly unanimous decision to reject a generous tentative agreement that would have made our Aircraft Maintenance Engineers the highest paid in the country, with a take-home pay increase of 30% to 40% in the first year of the proposed agreement, it is clear that the bargaining process has broken down."
The strike is set to begin at 9pm Eastern Time on Thursday.