CALGARY — WestJet’s 4,400 flight attendants are now on strike  – and WestJet is sharing what it offered in the bargaining process, and was not accepted, by the union.

WestJet’s running total of cancelled flights, about 36 hours after the airline initiated a take-down of its network, now stands at 309 …

Saturday, August 1 as of 11 p.m. MT – 33 cancellations

Saturday, August 1 as of 3 p.m. MT – 78 cancellations

Saturday, August 1 as of 11 a.m. MT – 86 cancellations

Saturday, August 1 as of 9 a.m. MT – 32 cancellations

Friday, July 31 as of 9 p.m. MT – 80 cancellations

“Late into the night, WestJet put forward changes in several key areas in an effort to reach an agreement and avoid work stoppage. These efforts were made subsequently to the airline already addressing the explicit demands vocally communicated through the union’s public campaign,” WestJet said in a statement.

WestJet said 250,000 passengers are impacted by the cancellations so far. 

“We’re disappointed to be here; this directly impacts the travel plans of our guests, our WestJetters and the communities and businesses we serve,” said CEO Alexis von Hoensbroech.

“Our focus remains on staying available for the union to reach an agreement. We presented a proposal that would have set a new standard for cabin crew in Canada, making WestJet the only airline to offer an hourly rate covering all time before and after flights, plus a double-digit wage increase in year one among other priorities the union raised. Unfortunately, it wasn’t accepted.”

In a media release from the union, Alia Hussain said WestJet’s latest offer didn’t go far enough.

“We are on strike because we believe we deserve better,” said the president of the union’s 8125 local. “We are ready to go back to the table to settle. We hope the federal government will not interfere and will let the bargaining process run its course. Unpaid work is a big piece of our priorities, but we are bargaining a comprehensive contract.

“We would not be here if (the airline) had taken our concerns seriously for almost 11 months of bargaining.”

Here’s a look at the wage increases WestJet offered across the board …

Effective October 1, 2026: 13.0% increase

Effective January 1, 2027: 2.5% increase

Effective January 1, 2028: 2.5% increase

Effective January 1, 2029: 2.5% increase

. Retroactive wage payment to January 1, 2026

. Duty pay premium (new) – a payment for all duty hours (additional pay for all hours worked designed to solve the union’s claim of unpaid work), equivalent to another 12% of salary increase

. Healthcare Spending Account: $300 in health spending per year

. Significant increase in per diem (meal allowance) rates: increase of 13% in 2026, and 2.5% every year thereafter

. Fifth week of vacation at 25 years of service

. Maternity leave top-up to 17 weeks postpartum

. New flexible part-time program (reduced block)

. Significant scheduling and quality-of-life improvements: one additional hour of rest at home base; increase to minimum rest away from base of one hour; out of base partial shift trades

. Premium payment when reassigned to an uncovered flight in a base

. Reduced duty day maximum when working three legs or more

. Payment when crew are faced with a delay accessing a hotel room on a layover

A BIG QUESTION MARK

A question mark hanging over the talks is how Prime Minister Mark Carney’s government might intervene.

Soon after Air Canada flight attendants went on strike over what they deemed unpaid work last August, Jobs Minister Patty Hajdu directed the country’s labour board to order them back on the job.

The union defied the order, forcing Air Canada back to the bargaining table where the parties hashed out a tentative deal. The union’s move marked an extralegal precedent that served as a warning to airline executives across the country in future negotiations.

Reaction to the news of a strike came swiftly from Hajdu, who said in a statement on social media that she was disappointed that no deal could be reached to avoid a disruption.

She reiterated previous comments that the strongest deals happen at the table, but did not say whether the government planned to intervene.

Even a brief shutdown will cost WestJet millions of dollars during the height of summer travel — on a long weekend across much of Canada. The airline operates more than 600 flights per day carrying thousands of passengers — sometimes more than 70,000, according to the company.

In February, Air Canada flight attendants secured compensation for ground work that will climb to 70% of their hourly rate for the hour before takeoff — also known as boarding pay.

Ottawa launched an investigation into unpaid work in the airline sector in August 2025, when negotiations between Air Canada and the union representing its cabin crew boiled over into a strike that saw planes grounded as workers took to the picket lines.

Central to that work stoppage were allegations from CUPE that flight attendants are regularly subjected to unpaid work when aircraft are grounded.

In response, the jobs minister asked her department to look into whether workers in the sector were being paid below a standard set by the federal minimum wage.

Findings from the first phase of that probe, published in February, found little evidence that unpaid work was widespread in the industry, although investigators flagged some issues with part-time and entry-level flight attendants for a closer look.

In May, Canada’s main flight attendants union cried foul on airline submissions to the government, as questions persist around what constitutes aviation “work.”

In a letter, the head of CUPE’s airline division said the information on wages that airlines provided to authorities this month relies on a narrow and “misleading” definition of work to prove that cabin crew are paid fairly.

With file from The Canadian Press