TORONTO — Unifor is adding 750 WestJet contact centre employees to its ranks after Calgary-based workers voted 89% in favour of joining the union.

The new bargaining unit includes air passenger protection regulations agents and guest services employees working in contact centre operations. The workers will become members of Unifor Local 531 once certification is completed by the Canada Industrial Relations Board.

“We are thrilled to welcome these workers to Unifor. They join with other WestJet workers who are already members of our union,” said Unifor National President Lana Payne.

“Unifor is an experienced voice for workers across the aviation sector, and we look forward to working with these new members on their first collective agreement.”

The union says workers organized over concerns related to outsourcing, workplace discipline, scheduling and wages.

According to Unifor, approximately 400 Calgary positions have been transferred to TELUS Digital agents in El Salvador since October 2024. The union also says WestJet has frozen local hiring, reduced hours and encouraged voluntary departures.

“Call centre workers live with constant uncertainty as employers outsource work, shift contracts and close workplaces with little warning,” said Unifor Western Regional Director Gavin McGarrigle.

“These are skilled workers providing essential customer service, and they deserve stable, secure jobs and not to have their livelihoods treated as disposable or precarious. Joining Unifor lets us help them fight back.”

The new bargaining unit will now turn its attention to negotiating its first collective agreement.

“This campaign was always about contact centre workers standing together and having a say in our future at WestJet,” said Jaee McKenna, a WestJet sales and service agent.

“We worked hard for this, had a lot of conversations with our co-workers and never gave up. Now, we get to take that energy into bargaining and start building our first collective agreement together.”

Unifor says it is also working with more than 300 Porter Airlines contact centre employees who are seeking to organize.

Lead image caption: Unifor welcomes 750 new members from WestJet’s Calgary call centre